Dead shark among items seized at US airports

Next time you travel, make sure to leave your dead shark at home — that is, if you don’t want to make the Transportation Security Administration (TSA)’s list of top 10 catches of the year.

On the list of bizarre items TSA workers found during luggage inspections, a dead baby shark came in at number six, right after a live smoke grenade.

The shark was discovered by TSA agents at Syracuse Hancock International Airport in the fall, floating in a jar of liquid chemical preservative.

And it was this liquid chemical — not the shark — that TSA had a problem with.

“The chemical was deemed to be considered a hazardous material and as such, was not permitted to be carried through the checkpoint,” TSA said in a release.

The no. 1 item on the list is even more surprising

Other items on the list included a slingshot, a book holding concealed knives and an assault rifle.

TSA prohibits carrying guns, knives, bludgeons, self defense devices like pepper spray — and any replicas of these items — onto planes.

Closer to the top were other commonly known non-negotiables — drugs and explosives. Marijuana stashed in a shampoo bottle came in at number four, and a handmade solar panel with explosive potential made second.

But topping the 2020 list is a less traditional TSA catch.

At number one, two TSA canine handlers at Newark Liberty International Airport “caught” each other, and married in the presence of their Explosive Detection Canines, Obelix and Proto.

“The two canines not only detect explosives but also detect love when they see it,” TSA said in an Instagram post.

In 2020, love came out on top for TSA, leaving grenades and dead sharks in the dust.

Should you need to bring a shark on a plane, though, just make sure it’s swimming in water, not chemical solution, the TSA said.

And, as always, cartoon baby sharks are allowed.