| Porthole 31 Jan 22

EVERYONE loves a souvenir, but this is somewhat ridiculous.

America’s Customs and Border Protection has seized a whopping 509 “prohibited aquatic items” from two cruise passengers as they disembarked from a ship in New Orleans.

The officer was stationed to monitor the arrival of a ship which was returning from a seven-day Western Caribbean cruise, visiting ports including Montego Bay, Grand Cayman and Cozumel.

A couple were referred for a baggage examination, where a large quantity of “various aquatic items such as seashells, coral etc,” were discovered.

The pair admitted to collecting the items during ports of call “for use in art projects,” with Customs and Border Patrol detaining the collection which was formally turned over to the US Fish and Wildlife Service.

The items which were determined to be illegally imported without a permit included nine sea fans, 47 sea sponges, five Queen conch cells, 297 molluscs, four chitons and 30 sea urchins.

“While these aquatic items look nice, the import/export of them needs to be regulated to protect these natural resources,” said New Orleans Port Director Terri Edwards.