Dinosaur teeth found in French customs, checking near Italy's border

French customs officers found nine dinosaur teeth during a routine check near the Italian border.

The discovery was made when the officers inspected a Spanish truck on the A8 highway on January 28, staff say.

They noticed the obvious fossils in two parcels and sent them to be examined by the Museum of Prehistory in the nearby town of Menton.

On Friday, an expert revealed that the teeth belonged to reptiles from the end of the Cretaceous – 72 to 66 million years ago – in Morocco, authorities said.

Trucks traveling on the A8 highway between Spain and Italy regularly stop.

Agents open random parcels as they sometimes contain illegal drugs, Samantha Verdon customs told AFP agency.

But the last time was unexpected.

One of the identified teeth belonged to Zaraafasaura Oceanis, a marine reptile about 3m (10 feet) and was named in Morocco in 2011.

Three belonged to Mosasaver, a large water creature, which is measured up to 12 m.

It is believed that five other teeth were those of Dyrosaurus phosphaticus, a distant ancestor of crocodiles.

The truck driver told the employees that he had delivered the parcels of people in the Italian cities of Genoa and Milan, the French authorities said.

Officials work to identify the intended package recipients. Collection of fossils is legal, but their exports often require a license.