Lithuania

 Bring five pairs of crickets with you!

That was the request when our intrepid director, John Ruane, was about to visit Lithuania again in January.

Kaunas Zoo had run out of crickets for its reptile collection: they provide a highly nutritious food, but if they are not kept properly they are prone to a fungal infection which can wipe out a whole colony.

Naturewatch's administrator, Katie, whose investigative abilities suggest a higher calling, soon sourced a local supplier.

John checked with the relevant authorities that there would be no problem in transporting the crickets - they are a very common tropical insect so they do not come under CITES regulations - and satisified that they were given sufficient food and water for the journey.

His arrival at Vilnius airport, with crickets alive and well, was greeted with relief and delight on both sides of the North Sea.

There are now two colonies of crickets: John had brought enough of both black and brown species that they have been split into two populations, at the Zoo and at LiSPA. There will be a little healthy competition for bragging rights in cricket-breeding!