A Scots mum was left horrified after discovering a huge spider's nest growing inside her banana.
Michelle, from Leith in Edinburgh, returned home after a shopping trip at the city's Waitrose in Morningside. But as she unpacked, she noticed a strange blister-type mark on the fruit.
The mum-of-three speedily called on her husband for backup. As the pair placed the bananas in the sink and opened it with a fork, they were left disgusted when it released hundreds of tiny spiders.
Speaking to Edinburgh Live, Michelle said: "I bought them from Waitrose, Morningside last Monday and noticed when I took them out of the wrapper that there was something odd. I thought finding spider's nests on shop-bought fruit was a urban myth but then I took a photo and zoomed in, you could see a spider crawling out!
She said that she was worried they were the poisonous Brazilian Wandering Spider: "My husband opened the nest out and hundreds and hundred of spiders came out. When I looked online to see what they might be, it was all horror stories sounding frightening." I’m so glad that I took the bananas out of the plastic, if I had left them in and my son had opened it the next day I have no doubt that all those spiders would have hatched and went everywhere - which doesn’t bare thinking about.
"I’m unsure if these were harmful or not but they have put me off buying bananas for now. I’ve had a dream that the mother was in the pack and escaped. Afterwards I felt itchy all over!"
She quickly phoned Waitrose customer service. Michelle added: "It sounded a young guy [on the phone]. He had never heard of anything like it before. He was very polite though."
Michelle explained that she chucked the fruit away and poured bleach and hot water down the sink to get rid of the baby of the spiders. Since sharing her experience with her friends, one suggested she should have put the bananas in the fridge as a way to kill the nest. Another reassured her they wouldn't have been poisonous.
She explained that either way, she's not wanting any bananas in her house for a while and hasn't been back to the Waitrose store in Morningside since.
A Waitrose spokesperson said: "We’re so sorry to hear about this incident happening and we’re urgently investigating this with our supplier to make sure that this doesn't happen again."
Don't miss the latest news from around Scotland and beyond - Sign up to our daily newsletter here .
