The 'Jane Doe' told police who found her wandering near a casino in Friant, California, at 3am that she had been in the water and needed their help

A naked woman with webbed toes was found sopping wet near a lake claiming to be mermaid called 'Joanna'.

She told police who found her wandering near a casino in Friant, California, at 3am on Tuesday morning, that she had been in the water and needed their help.

Police have issued a photograph of the woman in a bid to trace her true identity .

A spokesman for the the Fresno Police Department said she doesn't seem to know who she is - and are calling her a 'Jane Doe' in posters asking for help identifying her.

Lt. Mark Hudson said: "She was wet, she said she had been in the lake, said she needed help and needed to be taken to the hospital."

The woman was found walking down the middle of Millerton Road, near the Eagle Spring Golf & Country Club, about a mile from the popular Table Mountain Casino.

Police say that she was mostly naked when she was found - and that her hair was wet because she had been in the water and claimed to be a mermaid called "Joanna".

Police says that since then 'Joanna' has consistently answered "I don't know" to most questions.

Lt Hudson added: "We did go through records after fingerprinting her and we still did not come up with her identity."

The woman is described as being 5ft 4in tall, with brown eyes and brown hair, weighing around 150 pounds and as having webbed feet.