These are the heartbreaking remains of a mother bear and her cub seized by customs officials after they were trafficked out of the USA hidden in a container.

The stuffed American black bears are protected under the wildlife convention CITES and cannot be shipped around the world without special permission.

But when suspicious customs officials in the city of Gdynia, Poland searched a shipping container they found these unregistered disturbing stuffed remains.

The haunting images are seen in a video clip shot as officials were searching the trailer.

While the mother seems to look off into the distance, her cub looks up to her, as if for protection.

The bodies were found on 5th June after investigators became suspicious of items on the shipping manifest listed as ‘hunting trophies’, said Poland’s National Revenue Administration, or KAS.

It became evident that the shipper did not have the right documents to bring the grim display out of the US, according to local media.

The American black bear – Ursus americanus – is under protection of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), also known as the Washington Convention.

Anyone exporting CITES specimen needs to provide a special exemption document authorising the trade.

Without one they could face up to five years in jail.

KAS spokesperson Sebastian Pakalski said in a statement from KAS obtained by Newsflash: “Among the goods declared for customs clearance, there were items declared as hunting trophies.

“During the search, uniformed officers discovered that they were two prepared black bears.

“The owner of the goods did not have permission to export the CITES specimens from the USA, so they were retained as evidence in a criminal case.

“Illegal transport and trade in specimens of endangered species is a crime punishable by a high fine, imprisonment from three months to five years and the loss of the specimen.”

Pakalski added: “For many years, KAS has been conducting various educational and information campaigns about the principles and goals of CITES, including informing travelers about the need to have appropriate documents for the transport of animals and plants in danger of extinction across borders, as well as items made of them.”