Human Mermaid Tail

We clipped an article called "Tail of a New Zealand Mermaid" from The Sun Herald (16 September 2007) two years ago, which went straight into the Black Mermaid scrapbook. The articled talked about a woman named Nadya Vessey – a double amputee – who had approached special effects company Weta Workshop of Lord of the Rings and King Kong fame about the possibility of making her a prosthetic mermaid's tail. Well, Weta has now delivered. In last weekend's edition (1 March 2009), The Sun Herald ran a followup story to say the tail has been completed.

The prosthetic tail allows Ms Vessey to propel herself through the water with an undulating movement. She has delighted in putting it through its paces in swimming pools as well as in Auckland Harbour.

To read more, check out "A Tail Like No Other: The Making of a Mermaid". The photo is by David White/Snapper Media.