Family’s horror after finding scorpion in their kitchen after it hitched a ride 6,000 miles back from Kenya
- Liz Burrows, of King’s Cliffe, Northamptonshire found insect with ‘tail quivering’
A family were left horrified when they found a scorpion with its ‘tail quivering’ in their kitchen- and believe it may have hitched a 6,000 mile trip back with them from Kenya.
Liz Burrows, 50, and her husband Ian, 52, came home with their 18-year-old daughter Daisy to find the 4cm long creature in the middle of the floor.
The family, from King’s Cliffe, Northamptonshire, believe it might have snuck back with Daisy who had recently returned from a month-long trip in Kenya.
But it would have meant the insect would have been scampering around the home for the last two weeks.
The family currently doesn’t know the species but after carrying out some online research have suggested it could be a striped back scorpion or a pygmy thick tail.
The venom in the stings from these types of scorpion are rarely deadly but can be very painful, and in some cases dangerous.
The family, from King’s Cliffe, Northamptonshire, believe the scorpion (pictured) might have snuck back with their daughter who had recently returned from a month-long trip in Kenya
The family currently don’t know the species but after carrying out some online research have suggested it could be a striped back scorpion or a pygmy thick tail
Daisy initially mistook the scorpion for a leaf, but her father then scooped it up with a bit of paper and plonked it in a jar with holes in the lid.
Mrs Burrows, a financial planner, said: ‘We’d been out and got home and I went to the fridge and it was just in front of it on the floor.
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‘My daughter looked down thinking it was a leaf at first.
‘It then became quite clear it was a scorpion. Its tail was quivering so it was still alive but it wasn’t moving much, certainly not enough to send us running out the room.
‘I wanted to get rid of it straight away but my husband thought it was quite interesting and wanted to keep it.
‘I think my neighbours are quite anxious that we have a scorpion in the house.’
Daisy recognised the scorpion from her travels, which led the couple to believe it caught an unwarranted lift back to the UK.
Her mother added: ‘It must have hitched a lift with my daughter from Kenya because we’ve never had a scorpion in the house before.
‘I’m just hoping it doesn’t have any other friends.
The insect was found in them middle of the kitchen with its ‘tail quivering’ and was scooped up into a jar with holes in the lid
‘I didn’t share my husband’s excitement. My first instinct was to kill it or dispose of it because of the risk to my family and the dogs.
‘We did some research online and we believe it could be a striped bark scorpion or a pygmy thick tail.’
The family now believe the scorpion might have died.
Mr Burrows, who is also a financial planner, added: ‘It’s exciting. You don’t often find a scorpion in the house. I was interested, which is why I put it in the jar.
‘However, sadly I think it’s now an ex scorpion.’
MailOnline has contacted the Royal Entomological Society to help identify the species of the scorpion.
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