IF you hide behind the sofa when David Attenborough tackles a particularly gruesome creepy-crawly, steer clear of this auction.

If it floated like a butterfly or stung like a heterometrus longimanus, Clarence Brind probably had one.

The enthusiast began picking up his 12,000 weird and wonderful creatures while travelling as a sailor, building one of the largest collections ever to be sold.

When he died 500, cases of insects, beetles and moths were found crammed into his tiny Newquay bedroom.

The lots for sale in Par, Cornwall, today include beetles the size of your hand and a monster whip scorpion whose feelers measure a yard across.