The Mystery of Mermaids

             On the eastern African coast, our ancestors have left their cradle in the treetops for the hearty food on the sea floor. Over time they slowly start to change. They even begin to stand upright from wading in the water. But something else is changing too. The Earth is shifting, and the waters are rising, flooding the shore. Six and half million years ago our ancestors were given a choice. Some of them drew inland and retained their old ways with their new body's, and some went deeper into the sea: never to come out. And six and a half million years ago the history of mermaids begins.
             In schools today we are taught that we evolved from apes when they moved out of the forest and into the grasslands and savannahs. However, this leaves a lot of unexplained questions. Why are we so different from other terrestrial animals? The aquatic ape theory offers an alternative scenario. It argues that there was a time when early humans spent much of their time in the water. What makes us so different from land animals came from this period. .
             For example, we are hairless.
             Scientist suggests it was because of over heating. But no other land animal has adopted this trait. In fact hair on the body of animals acts a defense against the sun. All other non human mammals that are hairless are swimmers or wallowers like dolphins, whales, or hippopotamus. Hair creates drag in the water.
             Humans are also the fattest primates. In fact we have ten times the amount of fat cells expected of an animal of our size. There are only two kinds of animals who carry this trait: hibernating ones and aquatic ones. In terrestrial animals fat is located internally, like around the kidneys and intestines. In humans, and aquatic animals, it is located under the skin, to keep them warm in water.
             Even our very breath betrays our classic evolution theories. Unlike in land animals, we have voluntary breathing. This is also seen as an aquatic adaptation because it is only found in aquatic mammals.