Woman finds 18 scorpions in luggage after Croatia vacation

A woman in Austria found 18 scorpions in her suitcase (Image credit: Tierhilfegusental/Facebook)

A woman in Austria was shocked to discover a family of scorpions in her luggage after coming back home from a Croatia vacation.

The woman, who belongs to Natternbach in Upper Austria, was unpacking her luggage last Saturday when she came across the scorpions that had apparently travelled back with her from Croatia. She found 18 live scorpions in all – a mother and her babies. The woman immediately contacted animal rescue services and handed the arachnids over to them.

Tierhilfe Gusental, the animal rescue service, said in a statement posted to Facebook: "This afternoon we were contacted by a lady from Natternbach, because stowaways had nested in the luggage of her Croatia trip.

“Scorpion with cubs, to be exact. The animals were secured and handed over to us. They are currently in the Linz animal shelter until they start their return journey.” The organisation also shared a picture of the scorpions.

According to NZ Herald, this is reportedly the third time in less than 12 months that scorpions have travelled to Upper Austria from Croatia in a tourist’s luggage.

In an earlier instance, a woman from Linz discovered a scorpion in her home after a holiday in Croatia. What’s more terrifying is that she found the scorpion three weeks after returning from her vacation, which meant the animal had made itself at home in her home.

Scorpions are common in Croatia, but locals say they are not dangerous. In fact, according to the National Geographic, of the approximately 2,000 known species of scorpions, only about 40 are venomous enough to kill humans. Those found in Croatia are fortunately not lethal.