Treasure hunters armed with sledgehammers and crowbars have raided a Welsh beach where a four-year-old girl found a 215-million-year-old dinosaur footprint.
Lily Wilder was hailed by scientists after discovering the print - described as the finest of its type found in 10 years - on a beach at Bendricks Bay near Barry.
But armed vandals have since descended on the beach to get a glimpse of her find - with environmentalists warning of several people trying to remove rocks with sledgehammers.
Vandals could face £20,000 fines for damaging the area - which is on a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).
Treasure hunters armed with sledgehammers and crowbars have raided a Welsh beach where four-year-old Lily Wilder (pictured pointing at the footprint with her mother Sally, father Richard and baby brother George) found a 215-million-year-old dinosaur footprint
THE best preserved fossil of a dinosaur footprint ever found in South Wales has been discovered by a four-year-old girl. Lily Wilder was walking her dog with her dad, Richard Wilder, at Bendricks Beach in Barry when she spotted a dinosaur footprint in the rocks. They took photos and came back to the site with Lily s mum, Sally, and baby brother George. Mrs Wilder, said: “Lily likes dinosaurs, especially her pterodactyl toy, and was so excited about her discovery. She spotted a footprint in the rocks and it looked amazing; we weren t sure it it was real so I shared a photo on a Facebook group and had a huge response.