Mermaids; are not your everyday topic, but definitely fascinating and in certain ways even controversial. Not only are they beautiful to look at, but these fantastic creatures also have a beautiful history, story, and magic about them.

Not much "research" has been done on mermaids, which is why there are still questions hanging in the air when it comes to specifics.

Keep reading to find out more interesting facts about mermaids, including how long they live, what they look like, what they "do", or at least, as far as we humans know these things. 

Lifespan | How Do They Die?

Even though they resemble humans in many ways, mermaids can die. They do however live hundreds of years more than the average human. Much like us, they simply die of old age.

Rather than sinking to the bottom of the ocean and staying there once dead, it is said that when mermaids die, they turn into the foam that can be found on the surface of the ocean. 

They have a low reproductive rate but taking into consideration their very long lifespan, it doesn't make that much of a difference.

In case you're wondering how mermaids reproduce; they have mermen living with them to help them out, although there hasn't been much said about them. 

The next time you see a bunch of sea foam at the top of the ocean, you might be witnessing a mermaid funeral that you didn't know about. 

What Are Mermaids?

The sea is a wonderful, rich, and mysterious place, and we have only discovered about %5 of it. Does that sound scary to you? For most people it does.

This also means that there are probably numerous sea creatures and plants that we are yet to encounter; maybe mermaids will finally make a return once we discover how deep in the ocean they live. 

In case you didn't already know what mermaids are, here comes a quick recap. Mermaids are what some might call "magical" sea creatures, who have been around for a very long time.

They have the upper body of a human, and the lower half of a fish, usually creating a beautiful tale with bright and shiny scales in different colors. 

They're often known for their beautiful singing voices, which they would use to lure (sailor) men or pirates towards them, and in some cases trap them, capture them, or kill them.

They use their beauty as a weapon, and they do it in a very clever way. This does not mean that all mermaids are harmful, but rather that they made good use of their time. 

What Do Mermaids Look Like?

As was mentioned before, their top half resembles that of a woman, whereas the bottom half resembles a fish or simply a large tail.

They stand out mainly because of their beauty in every way.

From a near-perfect physique, long, wavy, shiny hair, gorgeous facial features, to spotless skin, they can seduce anybody around them. 

Their tail is filled with what seems like sparkly scales of various colors. From bright green, to deep blue, to a soft orange.

Some say that a mermaid is a mixture of a human, animal, and Goddess, and with this description, that statement seems nothing but accurate. 

But Are They 'Real'? 

It's hard to answer this question because there hasn't been much evidence or research that has gone into the mermaids of today's world.

During medieval times, mermaids were a "hot topic" and were seen as normal as a whale might be seen today. 

The main reason why mermaids are associated with sailors and/or people traveling by boat is that these were the people that spoke of encountering these beautiful, mystical creatures and shared their experiences.

A story dating back to the 1600s talks about a mermaid entering The Netherlands through a dike where she got injured.

She was found and treated back to health, and eventually, she learned the language, the customs, and over time converted to Catholicism.

Let's say that this might be a bit of a stretch, but again, it could be one of many encounters people had. 

Similarly, another famously recorded encounter was in the year 1614 and it was told by the captain of a ship.

To sum it up, he describes the encounter with the mermaid as seeing her swimming about with "all possible grace", as well as saying he experienced the first effect of love.

This would make sense, seeing as mermaids as professional seducers. 

Sadly, around the 1800s mermaids became an attraction for the public. The ones that were put on 'display' were fake and simply used to satisfy the public and make money.

From this point onwards, mermaids were heavily seen as a myth.

Of course, going back to the idea that such a large part of the ocean is still to be discovered, the possibility of mermaids is not ruled out. 

Nowadays when we hear somebody talk about mermaids we often associate it with something seen in (Disney) movies, TV shows, books, or our imagination.

There are, however, firm believers in the existence of mermaids, and who says we can't be a part of that? There is no concrete evidence proving they are real, yet also not enough evidence proving they are not.

Conclusion

To conclude, mermaids are the perfect mixture of gorgeous females and colorful fish.

Living in the deepest wildest corners of the mesmerizing blue ocean and probably having a lot of time on their hands, they sometimes use this beauty as a way of luring people into their numerous tricks, as well as using their angelic singing voices. 

Mermaids remain to be just as mysterious and controversial as they have been for the past decades.

There are some famous records of people encountering them, seeing them, and describing them, and probably a lot more infamous ones.

It is really up to us as individuals, what we want to believe in.