BANANA DRAMA; Poisonous scorpion found in supermarket fruit box.

Byline: Bart Dickson

SHOCKED workers ran for cover after finding a poisonous scorpion hidden in a box of bananas.

Staff at the Morrisons store panicked when the stowaway - which had travelled thousands of miles from Colombia - made a dash from its hiding place and on to the shop floor.

The supermarket staff captured the arachnid in a plastic box before contacting the SSPCA.

The scorpion was taken from the store in Cambuslang, near Glasgow, to the charity's Animal Rescue and Rehoming Centre at Cardonald.

Last night, it had found a home at Edinburgh Butterfly and Insect World, where staff have named the young female Sam.

Andrew McDonald, general manager there, said: "She's about one inch long and will grow to just over two inches.

"She could give a fully grown adult a nasty sting that could last for about an hour. But the very young and pensioners could be in agony for four to five hours.

"However, she is not a killer."

SSPCA driver Pam Cairns said: "We believe this is a juvenile desert hairy scorpion, common in Colombia.

"The staff at Morrisons very bravely scooped the scorpion up into a plastic box."

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STING IN THE TALE: The scorpion found at the Morrisons store, inset