# Fake or not? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 7, 2006, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fake-or-not/367643 "2006-08-07T03:18:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![diggleblop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ac91a4/32.png) [@diggleblop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/diggleblop)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2006, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fake-or-not/367643/1 "2006-08-07T03:18:12Z")
I have my doubts, but found this pic on a site. No other information about it. I checked snopes with “merman” and “mermaid” etc… Nothing. I think a find like this would make worldwide news. [![](https://static.flickr.com/77/208677954_d7b322600e_o.jpg) ](https://static.flickr.com/77/208677954_d7b322600e_o.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Revenant\_Threshold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@Revenant\_Threshold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revenant_Threshold)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2006, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fake-or-not/367643/2 "2006-08-07T03:19:08Z")
Looks like a movie prop to me. ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2006, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fake-or-not/367643/3 "2006-08-07T03:19:47Z")
Fake, and not a good one. The guys that did _Alien Autopsy_ were better at this kind of thing, and they sucked. ---
**Author:** ![diggleblop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ac91a4/32.png) [@diggleblop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/diggleblop)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2006, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fake-or-not/367643/4 "2006-08-07T03:28:23Z")
[QUOTE=Oakminster] Fake, and not a good one. The guys that did _Alien Autopsy_ were better at this kind of thing, and they sucked. [/QUOTE] Agreed. They could’ve at least made it look slimy or something. ha. ---
**Author:** ![I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/i_love_me_vol.i/32/521_2.png) [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Love_Me_Vol.I)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2006, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fake-or-not/367643/5 "2006-08-07T03:49:19Z")
I dunno-- I’ve looked at the photo pretty carefully, examined it from different angles and various enlargements; I’ve mucked around a bit in Photoshop with it, and I’m inclined to believe it’s definitely real. Real papier-mache. ---
**Author:** ![Electronic\_Chaos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Electronic\_Chaos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Electronic_Chaos)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2006, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fake-or-not/367643/6 "2006-08-07T05:36:33Z")
Not to be snarky, but what reason would you have to believe it’s real? Unless I saw the picture on CNN, with a datestamp other than April first, I’d just brush it off as a hoax. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2006, 6:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fake-or-not/367643/7 "2006-08-07T06:09:31Z")
It’s a [Fiji Mermaid.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiji_mermaid) ---
**Author:** ![Savannah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@Savannah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Savannah)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2006, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fake-or-not/367643/8 "2006-08-07T06:19:04Z")
Well, I’m sure it’s fake, but if I were on the beach and saw it in the shadows, I would have a heart attack. Just got back from a day at [China](http://www.martinstrong.com/images/China_beach_sm.jpg) [Beach](http://hep.phys.sfu.ca/~yann/Private/pictures/Canada/VancouverIsland/Sooke/.slide_0321.jpg) and could easily imagine, with the sand in my shoes, all sorts of wonders from the waves… ---
**Author:** ![Missy2U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@Missy2U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Missy2U)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2006, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fake-or-not/367643/9 "2006-08-07T15:55:53Z")
I am not sure why, but I think this picture is very, very cool. ---
**Author:** ![Spatial\_Rift\_47](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a8b319/32.png) [@Spatial\_Rift\_47](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spatial_Rift_47)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2006, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fake-or-not/367643/10 "2006-08-07T15:57:08Z")
He’s dead, Jim. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2006, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fake-or-not/367643/11 "2006-08-07T22:11:22Z")
[QUOTE=diggleblop] I have my doubts, but found this pic on a site. No other information about it. I checked snopes with “merman” and “mermaid” etc… Nothing. I think a find like this would make worldwide news. [![](https://static.flickr.com/77/208677954_d7b322600e_o.jpg) ](https://static.flickr.com/77/208677954_d7b322600e_o.jpg) [/QUOTE] Did I just get whooshed or did you actually think that was real? Please tell us you were kidding. 😕 ---
**Author:** ![diggleblop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ac91a4/32.png) [@diggleblop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/diggleblop)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2006, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fake-or-not/367643/12 "2006-08-08T00:43:59Z")
No, I never thought it was real. But that doesn’t mean that I didn’t overlook or just not hear about some odd finding in some tropical country. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Rysdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7cd45c/32.png) [@Rysdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysdad)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2006, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fake-or-not/367643/13 "2006-08-08T00:48:52Z")
I used to catch those all the time…in the Mississippi River just downstream from the Monticello Nuke plant. You hardly ever see them anymore. I hear they’ve been out-competed by the furry carp. PS- They fight like hell, but they’re really bony and not good eating.