Revenge on an 'ex': Naming your former love after a COCKROACH!

More than 50 people have taken comic revenge on their former loves - by naming cockroaches after them.

Staff at North Anston's Tropical Butterfly House, Wildlife and Falconry Centre came up with the amusing idea to coincide with Valentine's Day, this week.

They have around 300 cockroaches at their base, a mix of 'death heads and hissing cockroaches' - which sounds nice.

And at £2 a pop, there was a quick response from people who wanted to associate the first names of previous human pests with the creepy-crawlies that can survive a nuclear holocaust.

The Centre initially posted a message on line asking: "Is your ex still bugging you?

"Why not name a cockroach after them? You will receive a certificate and their name will be added to our roach board."

On Tuesday, the board was unveiled with the names of both male and female ex-partners.

Martine Mellor, Marketing Manager at the House in Woodsetts Road and a former employee of The Star, explained that she and Managing Director Kim Bellis had discovered a similar exercise being run on the other side of the Atlantic.

"We'd like to take credit for it but we saw something like it at a zoo in America, we just put our own twist on it," she said.

"Everybody took it in good spirit, it was all a bit of fun, and we revealed the names on the board on Valentine's Day."

On Facebook one poster inquired: "Does it have to be an ex? Can’t it be a husband that’s annoyed you?"

Another thought the idea to name them after her ex was "mean to cockroaches."

"I did agree with that" laughed Martine.

"My ex-sister-in-law took part, which I found quite funny!

"There were also people buying them for friends who didn't necessarily have anyone on Valentine's Day as a nice gesture to cheer them up."

Money from the cockroach christening will go to conversation projects at North Anston.

Fun Facts about cockroaches:

*They can live up to a week without its head.

*They might be tough as old boots during the night but they are nocturnal and will run away from light.

*They are frugal and can live up to three months without food and a month without water.