One Mermaid Encounter Story from "Yahoo Answers" :

(maybe result of past genetic lab experiment???)

yes they are real, but there are only a few left in the sea.
i saw one once when i was at my friends beach house i couldn't sleep so i went down to the sand for a walk and the sun was just rising and on some rocks was a woman with very long hair but i noticed something silver and shiny around her legs, then i realized she was a mermaid. i was in shock and was about to go back into the house when i tripped over a rock and she saw me, she paused for a while before jumping into the water. i ran inside to tell my friend and we went looking for her again but couldn't find her.

Link : [link to answers.yahoo.com]