THIS is a Skorpion!
Posted on 05/02/2014 1:01:49 PM PDT by nickcarraway
A dangerous scorpion shocked passengers as it nipped into a Tube station and tried to pinch a ride on a man’s bag.
The man screamed when he saw it clinging to his bag at Victoria Underground station in central London.
London Underground staff were quickly on hand after hearing the commotion, British Transport Police (BTP) said.
They managed to capture the scorpion and placed it in a plastic lunchbox, which they pierced with air holes, while they called the police.
Specialist wildlife crime officers from BTP went to the station to remove the creature, which had been put on a shelf in the station manager’s office.
Pc Mike Charnick, said: “There is a surprisingly wide range of wildlife on and around the railway network but this is the first time I’ve come across a scorpion.
“Station staff did a great job containing the animal and keeping it safe until we arrived.
“I contacted London Zoo and made arrangements to take the animal there to be assessed.”
Keepers specialising in invertebrates safely housed it and contacted experts at the Natural History Museum to check exactly what type of scorpion it was.
It has been identified as a Centruroides – a potentially dangerous species – which may have come from the Caribbean.
Dave Clarke, bugs team leader at ZSL London Zoo, said: “It is bizarre that this species was found in somewhere like Victoria station. We have been keeping the arachnid safely and securely whilst establishing an exact identification of the creature.
“The scorpion really is a beautiful animal and it’s a shame that it has been exposed to such a stressful situation.”
The passenger who discovered the scorpion had been sitting in a park all day. He did not leave a name or any contact details so officers have been unable to work out where he picked it up. No passengers were at risk during the incident, which happened in the evening of Sunday, April 6.
In CA, AZ, NM, or TX, that's what I'd do, but on the London Underground, I'd call the authorities. It's not that I would feel inadequate to the task of squishing an arachnid on the other side of the Pond, but I would be concerned that no one would bother with identification for the resulting goo. It's worth at least attempting to identify the species and its source, and thinking about whether the West's enemies might have decided to start releasing such wildlife in parks and public transit.
THIS is a Skorpion!
“The scorpion really is a beautiful animal and it’s a shame that it has been exposed to such a stressful situation.”
Yeah...the scorpions I’ve met - and I’ve met a lot in Arizona - REALLY get stressed out by humans moving them somewhere! Of course, when I do it, they have already been squished and their scorpion juices have squirted out their sides, so maybe they just seem stressed in that state.
Nah!
Or a Muslim from Morocco?
5.56mm
Am I a bad man?
I use Finesse, ultra-hold hairspray, lacquer it and scoop into a plastic tub with lid. Into the trash. I’m a wimpy gal when it comes to those things. I hate them. The Finesse is great for holding hair and scorpions. Inexpensive
lol
You have scorps in OK?
Had one big guy in the computer room...long time ago!! Was real creepy....I didn't like that one!!! He could run fast!!!
Their sting hurts...but not deadly.
Did you scream?
I think I yelled!!!
LOL!!!
Umm... ping for your “edification”... ;-)
I’ve lived here my entire life, only been stung once, but it was by a bark scorp (they have more nasty venom than the big ones). I live now in the part of town where I grew up. The BIG ones live here. YUCK. One is squished and lacquered against the wall. lol, can’t scrape it off. I didn’t know OK has scorps. They are mean critters and primal.
I scream at almost every bug and scorps.
One of my good friends there was a retired Special Forces officer. His last tour in the Army was as commander of the Special Forces SCUBA School in Panama. While there he attended the Army's Jungle Operations course at Fort Gulick. He was out in bush one day with a guide. They were squatting alongside a jungle trail when Larry felt a sting on his arm. Larry was going to stomp the arachnid into the mud, when his guide stopped him. He said the best way to neutralize the scorpion's venom was to cut the brute's body in one half and with the other, get out his combat knife and cut him in half, then rub one of the halves on the spot of the sting; it was sure to make the pain go away. That's one theory that will go untested by me.
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