Becca

thanks for your comment…It is true that much of the oceans have yet to be explored (this may give cryptozoologists hope for finding “sea monsters”)…but as for land (and forested areas with riverine ecosystems), these get smaller all the time (due to nautral factors and human encroachment)…so, while many rivers do end up draining into the oceans, it is rare that an ocean animal will take up habitation in a freshwater ecosystems — most of which are also declining (in volume, trophic levels and water quality)…Discoveries such as this (a large water-dwelling mammal) are good news for biodiversity…but they are exceptionally rare things…and, river dolphins have been seen and documented previously…this is not true for “classical” mermaids.