Viral Optical Illusion Claims Viewers Will See Either 'Fish' Or 'Mermaid,' Yet Everyone Sees 'Donkey' Or 'Seal'

The internet loves a good optical illusion, particularly when there are two clearly defined camps of interpretation. Last weekend, Twitter started having fun with a play on the classic duck-rabbit illusion. Twitter was shown a picture and told they would see either a "fish" or a "mermaid." Somehow, that promise went 0-for-2 for the majority of Twitter users.

If you’re right-brained, you’ll see a fish. If you’re left-brained, you’ll see a mermaid. What do you see? pic.twitter.com/w2fs49AO47

— Gavin Thomas (@gavinthomas2015) March 19, 2022

The picture was first posted last Tuesday on the Facebook page Audrey Loves Paris, where the account wrote the caption, "If you’re right-brained, you’ll see a fish. If you’re left-brained, you’ll see a mermaid." It's unclear where the science behind that observation came from, but users there swiftly remarked that they were seeing neither of the suggested animals. Instead, most reported they saw a mule or a seal.

On Saturday, the post started circulating on Twitter after musician Jason Isbell shared the image with his take. From there, most users, including a variety of British celebrities, reported they too saw a donkey or a seal. Some less-famous users concluded that they must have "no brain."

It's a donkey, though. pic.twitter.com/a60ccFCQ2G

— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) March 19, 2022

It’s not a donkey or a seal? 🤨 https://t.co/FwOlk5p3Si

— Padma Lakshmi (@PadmaLakshmi) March 20, 2022

Personally, donkey first, then seal – not finding a fish or a mermaid … https://t.co/UIRDYsFcJP

— Stephen Fry (@stephenfry) March 21, 2022

I must have no brain because I see a fucking donkey https://t.co/jllllZGmsF

— 𝓝𝓲𝓴𝓲𝓽𝓪🤍 (nikitaslattery_) <a href="https://twitter.com/nikitaslattery_/status/1505273603402698761?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 19, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I’ve seen a donkey and a seal lmaoooo am I no brained? <a href="https://t.co/kvzfZf3xUb">https://t.co/kvzfZf3xUb</a></p>&mdash; GOOD VIBES (Unkle_K) March 19, 2022

While we may never know what prompted Audrey Loves Paris to declare that the optical illusion displayed either a fish or a mermaid, Facebook user Simon Denyer may have come closest to discovering the truth in the original thread, when he commented, "What if I see clickbait?"