GUANGZHOU, China, March 20 (UPI) -- Officials at a Chinese airport said a woman attempted to smuggle tadpoles onto a plane by hiding them in her mouth.

The airport said the woman, a foreigner, was found to have a bottle of liquid in her luggage at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport's security checkpoint and she was told she would have to immediately drink or discard the liquid, the Guangdong Southern Media Network reported Wednesday.


The woman poured the liquid into her mouth and security workers became suspicious when she refused to swallow.

The workers instructed the woman to spit out the liquid and they discovered she had been concealing tadpoles in the water.

The woman said the tadpoles had been a gift from a Chinese friend and she didn't want to lose them. However, she was required to discard them before continuing on to her flight, officials said.