Passengers find a real snake on a plane

Our pick of the strange stories from around the world.

Snake's alive!

In a video clip that wouldn't be out of place in Hollywood blockbuster Snakes on a Plane, passengers on a flight in Mexico were shocked to see a bright green serpent dropping into the cabin from the overhead luggage compartment. Aeromexico said the snake was found on Sunday during a flight from Torreon to Mexico City. The plane was given priority landing and workers "secured the reptile", said the airline, which is investigating how it managed to get on to the flight in the first place.

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Hunter gored by dead elk

A hunter has been impaled on the antlers of a dead elk, after an accident in the remote Maury Mountains, Oregon, officials say. Gary Heeter, 69, was dragging the carcass of a large elk behind his offroad quad bike when the vehicle flipped and catapulted him on to the animal's antlers. Heeter was airlifted to hospital and remains in a stable condition.

Halloween syringe blamed on cat

An investigation into how a young Canadian found a syringe among her Halloween sweets has revealed the culprit to be a "clumsy cat". Officials say the cat accidentally knocked an unused insulin syringe from a shelf into a bowl of sweets meant for children trick-or-treating. It was then scooped up into the girl's bag. No charges will be made.