China seizes 620 turtles and tortoises smuggled from Vietnam
Chinese state media say border patrol officials have seized 620 wild turtles and tortoises -- 510 of them considered endangered -- that were found alive in a shipment of frozen seafood from Vietnam.
The official Xinhua News Agency said Sunday that border police detected crawling sounds when they were inspecting the shipment at a border city in the southwestern region of Guangxi on Aug. 24.
Xinhua said police discovered the endangered species, including Indochinese box turtles and elongated tortoises, in a shipment heading for the neighboring province of Guangdong, where the animals are considered delicacies.
