A horrified shopper has told of the chilling moment when he opened an ice lolly wrapper and found a frozen scorpion inside.
Jonatthan Marllon Espinola Reganham, 28, and his brother had bought lollies in Ribeirao Preto, Sao Paulo State, Brazil, to cool off from a 36 Celsius heatwave on 23rd October.
Jonatthan told local media: “My popsicles were darker colours, I ended up not even looking.
“When it was my brother’s turn, as soon as he opened it he saw that there was a scorpion.
“At first I doubted it, but then I pulled the wrapper off and saw it.
“It really was a scorpion, a baby. It was frozen at the tip and apparently dead.”
Jonatthan said that they went back to the ice cream shop to warn the owner, but did not tell police.
He said: “I didn’t want to cause problems for the store, even though it was dangerous. As a result, I didn’t register anything.”
However, scorpions, say experts, are one of the few creatures that can survive being deep-frozen and then be successfully reanimated.
Brazil is also home to one of the deadliest scorpions in the world.
The Brazilian yellow scorpion, or Tityus serrulatus, is responsible for more fatal stings across the whole of South America than any other creature in the region, say experts.
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Story By: Marija Stojkoska, Sub-Editor: Michael Leidig, Agency: Central European News
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