Organised crime gangs have moved into the growing blackmarket trade in rare Chinese fossils with many unwitting collectors now being sold illegal items over the Internet. Taking possession of rare 140 million-year-old fossilised fish, reptiles and dinosaur eggs recently seized by Australian customs, Chinese officials said the task of protecting valuable fossils was proving arduous.

?Certainly there is a great deal of organised criminal activity in progressing and growing this trade,? Australian Customs Minister Chris Ellison told.

Last week, Australian police seized about 1,300 fossils and dinosaur eggs believed to be from China, following a year-long operation with Chinese authorities. The huge 20-tonne haul netted in raids on two shops and another property at Mandurah, 70 km south of Perth, on Australia?s west coast. It included hundreds of dinosaur eggs, nests and skulls, rare tortoise remains and fossilised fish. With a single dinosaur egg worth up to A$15,000, the haul is believed to be worth millions of dollars on a lucrative international black market for such items.