AUSTRALIA returned a black-market collection of dinosaur and ancient reptile fossils to China on 21 June. The fossils, seized as part of a joint operation between the two countries, include a 130-million-year-old fossil of a marine reptile, the hyphalosaurus, and a collection of rare dinosaur eggs.
Earlier this month, Australia鈥檚 Department of the Environment and Heritage (DEH), federal police and Chinese investigators intercepted an even bigger haul of some 20 tonnes of fossils from warehouses in Mandurah, near Perth, Western Australia. These fossils are also expected to be returned to China, unless there is a legal challenge.
鈥淲e are looking to clarify whether they were actively trading [the fossils],鈥� says Kevin Wohlers, who heads the black-market fossil unit at the DEH. Individuals caught illegally importing such fossils into Australia face a fine of up to A$100,000 (US$70,000) or five years in jail for each item.
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The 20-tonne haul includes 3500 fossils originating mainly from the Chinese provinces of Liaoning, Gansu and Henan, and is estimated to be worth A$5 million. They include an extremely rare fossil tortoise called Manchurochelys as well as Lycoptera davidi fossil fish, six different types of dinosaur eggs, and the skull of a giant hyena from the Miocene.
鈥淚t鈥檚 incredibly significant. It鈥檚 such a large amount of material, including a great variety of different species,鈥� says palaeontologist John Long of the Western Australian Museum, who identified the fossils.