History Main / TailfinWalking

* One of Wonder Woman's suitors in the Silver Age comics was Manno the Merman, who is commonly depicted standing up on his fins when on land. However, he doesn't walk, [[http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rLV-ZuNPwJ4/SYjnedh2AuI/AAAAAAAADf8/9hsInlKJeew/s1600-h/WonderWoman125_14.jpg he hops.]]

The trope where a whale, dolphin, porpoise, walrus, seal, fish or shark walks on its tail-fin. This trope is especially common in cartoons, since filming this is difficult with a real fish. In reality, tail-fins are rather floppy, and won't support the animal's weight, however, it looks more natural than walking on the pectoral fins.

* Averted in ''WesternAnimation/IceAge4ContinentalDrift''. Flynn, the seal, doesn't walk, he moves by slithering along [[TruthInTelevision much like real seals do on land]].

In some settings where they exist, [[OurMermaidsAreDifferent mermaids]] can also be seen moving about like this, though another common variant would be to have their tails in a "U-shape", with the fins held off the ground and the mermaid balancing in a "kneeling" pose.

In some settings where they exist, [[OurMermaidsAreDifferent mermaids]] can also be seen moving about like this.

* Moosel from WesternAnimation/TheWuzzles.

The trope where a whale, dolphin, porpoise, walrus, seal, fish or shark walks on its tail-fin. This trope is especially common in cartoons, since filming this is difficult with a real fish. In reality, tail-fins are rather floppy, and won't support the animal's weight, however, it looks more natural then walking on the pectoral fins.

In settings where they exist, [[OurMermaidsAreDifferent mermaids]] can also be seen moving about like this.

* The Franchise/Pokemon [[VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon Popplio, Brionne and Primarina]] don't walk on their tail fins, but they can stand up for a few seconds; this is mostly seen when Primarina uses its signature move.

The trope where a whale, dolphin porpoise, walrus or seal walks on it's tail-fin. This trope is especially common in cartoons, since filming this is difficult with a real fish. In reality, tail-fins are rather floppy, and won't support the animal's weight, however, it looks more natural then walking on the pectoral fins.

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* This is an explicit rule of mermaids in ''OnePiece.'' Around age thirty their tail fin splits in two enabling walking on land (among [[TheMermaidProblem other things]]). They're also capable of moving around on their tailfins however.

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* Averted in ''VideoGame/ChronoCross'' - mermaids don't walk while on land, they hover. (You can see some "magic sparkles" around Irenes's tail when she's moving.)
* Also averted in ''[[KingdomRush Kingdom Rush: Frontiers]]''. The [[FishPeople Greenfins, Deviltides, and Redspines]] don't have tails, and [[{{Cthulhumanoid}} Bluegales]] inch forward caterpillar-style.
* The Pokémon [[VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon Popplio, Brionne and Primarina]] don't walk on their tail fins, but they can stand up for a few seconds; this is mostly seen when Primarina uses its signature move.

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* WesternAnimation/{{Jabberjaw}}, as seen in the page pic.
* Misterjaw in the 90-minute ''WesternAnimation/ThePinkPanther'' show

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* The water-fearing mermaid in ''WesternAnimation/AmericanDragonJakeLong'' was guilty of this on occasion. Averted with the older mermaid who was Jake's principal, who hid her tail by using a wheelchair.

This is a subtrope to FeatherFingers.

* The fish character in the Disney live action {{Film/Alice in Wonderland}} by Tim Burton.

* Averted with the fish in ''Disney/TheLittleMermaid'' except during the "Under the Sea" song, where they walk on their own tailfins underwater.

* Averted in ''WesternAnimation/IceAge4ContinentalDrift''. Flynn, the seal, doesn't walk, he moves by slithering along.

* Fish from ''Disney/ChickenLittle''.

* Moosel from TheWuzzles.

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* The fish character in the Disney live action {{Film/Alice in Wonderland}} by Tim Burton.

* Averted in ''WesternAnimation/{{Madagascar}} 2'': The shark that follows Morty onto the beach, through the jungle and into a volcano doesn't walk, it just lunges forward repeatedly.

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* In one of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''' TreehouseOfHorror episodes, the dolphins who took over the earth walked on their tail flukes when on land.

One trope that catches animators when portraying fish, cetacean (whale, dolphin and porpoise) and pinniped (walrus, seal) characters in cartoons is to have them walk on their tailfins (or tail flukes if a cetacean or back feet if a pinniped) when on land. This makes even less sense than a cow with a prehensile tail - cow tails are relatively rigid, but {{Prehensile Tail}}s are viable, whereas tailfins just aren't meant to support an animal's weight - but it's easier to show a fish walking on its tailfins than on its pelvic fins.