
Deadly African scorpion is found by horrified Brit woman after it ‘crawled past her feet' while she watched TV
A WOMAN has been left terrified after returning home from holiday and discovering a "deadly" scorpion in her home.
It is believed the scorpion hitched a ride back in her luggage when she returned from a holiday in Africa.
4
The deadly scorpion was discovered in a Swindon home earlier this month.
It was reportedly spotted by the homeowner as she sat watching TV with the scorpion crawling across her carpet right under her nose.
The terrified homeowner bravely trapped it under a wine glass before transferring it into a jar where it was safely kept until help arrived.
The RSPCA (Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) was called and recommended the woman speak to a specialist.
Jonathan Cleverly who provides educational workshops for schools featuring insects, reptiles and invertebrates was eventually scrambled to deal with the African scorpion.
Jonathan took the creature away after identifying it as a member of the Buthidae family which several of the most deadly scorpion species in the world are also a part of.
After getting the deadly creature home Jonathan made sure to keep it locked up safely before finding it a new home.
Jonathan owns several scorpions himself and was well prepared with the proper equipment to transport the deadly animal.
He dismissed the idea that the animal was an escaped pet, believing it snuck into the UK in the woman's luggage.
The dangerous creatures are commonly found in Africa from where the homeowner had recently returned.
The scorpion has since been taken to live with an expert who has a DWA (Dangerous Wild Animals) licence.
Moment student finds deadly Chinese SCORPION inside her parcel
It was estimated to be around 4cm long with Jonathan calling it the "most dangerous animal" he ever had.
Speaking to the BBC Jonathan said: "She'd [the homeowner] done a brilliant job of moving it from a wine glass into a jam jar with a secure lid so it couldn't move and escape.
"She put in some lettuce for a bit of moisture. She looked after it brilliantly well.
"The scorpion, I would like to say, is absolutely gorgeous - even if it is potentially harmful to humans, it's a very rare thing for these sorts of scorpion to make their way into the UK."
4
4
The six legged creature boasts a pair of fearsome looking claws and a large, venomous stinger on its tail.
Coming in at just 4cm the scorpion is small but deadly with the species occasionally causing human fatalities.
When fully grown the scorpion can reach a terrifying 12cm, more than twice the size of the one found in Swindon.
What are the most poisonous animals in the world?
Here are seven of the most deadly creatures...
The box jellyfish is widely regarded to be the most posionous animal in the world and contians a toxin that can cause heart attacks
Cobras, typically found in the jungles of India and China, can spit a venom which can result in death in a very short space of time and just 7ml of their venom is enough to kill 20 humans
The marbled cone snail is a sea creature that can release venom so toxic it can result in vision loss, respiratory failure, muscle paralysis and eventually death and, to make things worse, there is no anti-venom available
Posion dart frogs are small and brightly coloured but have glands containing a toxin that blocks nerve signals to muscles, causing paralysis and death
Puffer fish are considered to be a dangerous delicacy because some of their anatomy contains a hazardous toxin which, if ingested in a large quantity, can cause convulsions, paralysis, cardiac arrhythmia, and ultimately death
The Brazillian wandering spider, also known as the 'banana spider', has venom that is so high in serotonin it can paralyse and kill
Death stalker scorpions have a fitting name as enough venom from one can cause a lot of pain and respiratory failure

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Sun
34 minutes ago
- The Sun
Laurence Fox arrives at court charged with sex offences after ‘sharing upskirting photo of TV star Narinder Kaur'
LAURENCE Fox has arrived at court charged with sex offences after he allegedly shared an upskirting photo of TV star Narinder Kaur. The disgraced actor and failed politician, 46, is accused of re-posting the image on his X account in April 2024. 5 5 It showed Narinder, who rose to fame on Big Brother, climbing out of a taxi in 2009. The photo was taken without the TV star's consent or knowledge. Fox arrived at Woolwich Crown Court today where he is due to formally enter a plea. He is charged with two offences under section 66A of the Sexual Offences Act 2003. The first charge alleges on April 30 last year, he "intentionally shared a photograph which showed, or appeared to show, another person, namely Narinder Kaur, in an intimate state, with the intention of causing that person alarm, distress or humiliation'. The second says Fox "intentionally sent" a photograph of Narinder's genitals "intending that the person or another person would for the purpose of obtaining sexual gratification, and being reckless as to whether that person would be caused alarm, distress or humiliation". If convicted, he faces up to two years in prison and could be placed on the Sex Offenders Register. Narinder - who has waived her right to anonymity - reported the image when it was shared online, triggering an 11-month investigation by the Metropolitan Police. She previously said she felt "violated, humiliated and degraded" by the incident. In 2019, Fox moved away from his acting work, where he was best known for detective series Lewis. Since then, Fox has repeatedly come under fire for his views on race, gender and Covid. He was sacked from GB News in 2023 after making sexist remarks about a female journalist live on air. Fox attempted to move into politics and ran to replace Sadiq Khan as London Mayor under his political group, the Reclaim Party. But he only managed to pull in 47,000 votes in 2021 and lost his £10,000 deposit in the process. He married actress and singer Billie Piper in December 2007 and they have two sons, now aged 11 and 15. The couple separated in March 2016, with their divorce finalised two months later. 5 5 5


BBC News
42 minutes ago
- BBC News
Palestine activist's prison wait for trial 'outrageous'
The mother of a man charged in relation to an alleged break-in at the UK site of an Israel-based defence firm has said it is "outrageous" that he faces 21 months in prison before his case goes to Plastow, 34, is one of the 'Filton 18' accused of taking part in a Palestine Action protest at an Elbit Systems UK factory in Filton, Bristol last Plastow is still awaiting his trial which is scheduled for April next year. His mum, Jane Plastow, believes it is the longest anyone has been held in prison pre-trial on protest-related Judicial Office told the BBC it could not comment on individual cases. An earlier court hearing was told that during the incident a vehicle was driven into the doors of buildings and two responding police officers and a security guard were with many of the rest of the group, Mr Plastow, from Manchester, is charged with criminal damage, violent disorder and aggravated burglary which he denies. The Home Office has previously told the BBC: "The CPS has decided that there is sufficient evidence to submit to the court that these offences have a terrorism connection."However, none of the 18 have been charged with terror Systems UK is run separately to Israel-based Elbit Systems. It previously told the BBC that claims the facilities supply the Israeli military are "completely false".An Elbit Systems UK spokesperson told the BBC it will not comment on an ongoing legal process."I think [for Mr Plastow] there's a great sense of helplessness and hopelessness," Ms Plastow said."There have been lots of people locked up as political prisoners in Britain recently, there is Palestine Action and Just Stop Oil - but nobody has been locked up longer than my son and some of his comrades." 'Gross overreach' Ms Plastow said her son applied for bail, promising the judge that he would stay with his mother and wear an electronic tag."We had discussed the most onerous terms, it basically amounted to house arrest," Ms Plastow said she offered to pay £50,000, from a recent inheritance, but he was denied bail."My son has never been violent. It is a gross overreach," Ms Plastow added."The idea that at the moment it looks like he will be locked up for 21 months is outrageous."


BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Larne Leisure Centre: Gordon Lyons refuses to stand down over social media post
A Stormont minister has rejected calls for him to resign over a social media post about the location of migrant families who left their homes hours before the centre was Minister Gordon Lyons said that people caught up in clashes in Ballymena were being temporarily moved to Larne Leisure Centre. It was later attacked by about a crowd of 100 people and set on minister was accused of being "reckless and dangerous" by Alliance assembly member Danny Donnelly who was in the leisure centre when a crowd of about 100 smashed windows and set bins on fire Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn said Lyons should reflect on his comments, while the Green Party called for Lyons to resign. The attack on Larne Leisure Centre came during a third night of violence in Northern have been attacked with fireworks, bottles and bricks during the worst of the rioting was in Ballymena, but unrest also spread to other towns, including Larne, about 20 miles (30km) away, on Wednesday evening. The fire service said that fire damage to the centre had been "contained mainly to the front reception but there was extensive smoke damage".In a statement on Wednesday night, Mid and East Antrim Borough Council said the families placed at the centre had all been "safely relocated" and were no longer using the Lyons has been criticised for an earlier Facebook post in which he said he had been made aware that "a number of individuals were temporarily moved to Larne Leisure Centre".Alliance MLA Danny Donnelly said: "I thought it was incredibly reckless and dangerous to highlight the location of where these people were being kept and brought to a place of safety."The SDLP's Matthew O'Toole said he would refer Lyons to the standards commissioner over his comments, saying "lives are at stake". Lyons has defended his comments saying the information was in the public domain, and had been confirmed by the local council."I will very strongly hit back at any notion that I had revealed the use of this facility to the public when the protest was already planned, when everybody knew what was happening," Lyons told BBC Radio Ulster's Good Morning Ulster added that "the police had got in contact with our local councillors to say: 'We need to defuse the situation and let people know that this is or should no longer be the focus of any protest'." Green Party councillor Áine Groogan accused the minister of choosing to "stir division and deflect from his own failures"."This isn't leadership. It's cowardice. And it proves what many already know: Gordon Lyons is unfit for public office and should resign." The trouble began on Monday after a peaceful protest over an alleged sexual assault in Ballymena, County the first two nights of disorder, 32 officers were injured and six people arrested. In Ballymena on Wednesday, smoke bombs, fireworks, bottles and bricks were thrown at police during a stand-off with a gathered crowd.A row of six police Land Rovers advanced on the crowd, with officers in full riot gear pushing a number of individuals also deployed dogs and a water on Wednesday it was confirmed that a significant number of extra police officers were being deployed into areas Scotland has agreed to send officers, after police in Northern Ireland requested extra support under mutual aid arrangements.