Owners of one of Hong Kong's famous orchid shops in Prince Edward Road, Mongkok, face a possible $5 million fine and two years in jail after one of the biggest seizures ever of endangered wild orchids.
The same punishment faces importers of 183 live Asiatic Bony Tongue fish seized by Customs on Wednesday at Kai Tak.
The fish and orchids are listed on Appendix One of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, said senior conservation officer Chan Ping-kwong.
'That means that they are highly endangered and no commercial trade in them is allowed,' Mr Chan said.
About 10 Agriculture and Fisheries Department officers raided the flower shop after a tip-off and took away more than 300 orchid plants worth $150,000, an official said.
The wild orchids are thought to have come from Yunnan, while the $20,000 worth of fish were flown in from Thailand.