ABOUT US: THE MOTHS OF INDIA TEAM

Moths of India website is a vast project that draws upon the expertise of a large number of moth biologists, naturalists and advanced moth-watchers, and upon the generous contributions from moth photographers. As a result, this website is truly a consortium of scientists, whether they are professional, amateur or citizen. The current team members are:

Sanjay Sondhi: I am a Dehradun-based naturalist and work primarily on Lepidoptera, avifauna, herpetofauna, but enjoy studying anything else that moves! Though an engineer by qualification, I quit my job in 2008 to devote myself to nature conservation and environment protection. I am the Founder Trustee of Titli Trust (http://www.titlitrust.org) and am associated with Kalpavriksh (http://www.kalpavriksh.org). I have authored numerous books and papers which are listed here (http://www.titlitrust.org/List_of_Publications.html). If you want to know more about my work, email me at sanjay.sondhi1@gmail.com

Rachit Singh: I am a nature enthusiast, curious about all lifeforms but my favourite group has always been Lepidoptera which narrowed down to Moths finally, with time. My interest in this field was kindled when I was in Arunachal Pradesh, back in 2012, in a nature camp conducted by Sanjay Sondhi and since then it has grown manifold. I am a BSc. Biotechnology, Chemistry and Zoology graduate from Christ University, Bangalore. Currently I am pursuing Masters in Ecology & evolution from Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Germany; working under Dr. Gunnar Brehm in the Phyletisches museum. Present focus is on different methodological approaches pertaining to light attraction and trap types used in collection. Early stages of moths are quite fascinating to me and I would like to pursue this further along with exploring their intriguing functional roles and ecological mechanisms that they are part of. I can be contacted at rachitsingh98@gmail.com.

Jonathan D'silva: I am an automobile engineer by qualification, but a nature lover by heart. I am interested in nature photography, particularly moths and butterflies, and this has now further led me to understand my subjects much more deeply. I have been pursuing this interest passionately for around ten years and have taken many trips exclusively just to study them. Though an amateur, I have improved significantly on my understanding of moths, particularly with respect to their taxonomy & identification. I have taken part in Citizen surveys for butterflies and moths, and Biodiversity meets. I can be contacted on jd1073@yahoo.com.    

Yash Sondhi: I am a member of Titli Trust (http://www.titlitrust.org), currently pursuing my PhD from Florida International University (https://www.fiu.edu/). I started off as an amateur naturalist with a great fascination for butterflies and moths. That interest has now turned into a quest to understand how and why the amazing diversity in form, function and ecology in moths arisen. I am presently working on understanding the switch between nocturnality and diurnality, and the accompanying evolution of the visual system in Bombycoidea moths. I assist Titli Trust in conducting conservation and education related activities and I believe that science-based conservation is a priority. For any assistance or information, email me at yashsondhi@gmail.com.

Krushnamegh Kunte: I am a naturalist broadly interested in the biology of the Lepidoptera. I received my PhD in Integrative Biology from the University of Texas at Austin, USA, in 2008. I was a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at Harvard University, USA, until 2011. In 2012 I joined the faculty at the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS), Bengaluru (=Bangalore), as a Ramanujan Fellow. My research lab at NCBS investigates speciation and morphological diversification in butterflies. I have authored dozens of research papers and three books on butterflies. Read more at http://biodiversitylab.org or email me if you want to learn more about my research and writing, the Indian Foundation for Butterflies, this website or Indian Lepidoptera.

Purnendu Roy: I am a European resident, but as a child I regularly visited Kolkata and later on in my teenage years spent most summer holidays in Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh. I have a passion for the eastern himalaya not just in Moths, but also for the culture and landscape. Me and my partner run a small shop trading with social enterprises from around the world.

Alka Vaidya: A true naturalist Alka has completed distant education programmes conducted by Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) in Entomology, Ornithology, Botany & Biodiversity. Various outdoor training camps deepened her interest in Nature. She is one of the leading bird-watchers in India, having observed nearly 950 of the estimated 1250 bird species existing in India.  She has deep interest in moths and started studying these insects in 2005. Her study was published in the scientific Journal of BNHS under the Title “INVENTORY OF MOTH FAUNA (LEPIDOPTERA: HETEROCERA) OF THE NORTHERN WESTERN GHATS, MAHARASHTRA, INDIA” (December 2011) which she has co-authored. She is collecting data of moths focusing mainly on the Eastern Himalayas in the North Eastern states of India mainly Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Meghalaya. Alka has led many nature education camps conducted by BNHS as well as WWF. She started nature Club in association with WWF, mainly to sensitise and train young minds about the need to conserve nature. An avid photographer, she has held exhibition of her own Nature Photographs. Alka is an intrepid traveller having travelled to distant lands in different continents such as Africa, Europe, the Americas and Antarctica. 

P.R. Shashank: I am a scientist in Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi. I received my Ph.D. in Entomology from University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore in 2012. I joined current position in 2012 and my lab works on taxonomy of Indian moths with special interset on agricultural pests. Read more at http://shashankpathour.weebly.com/ or email me for further information spathour@gmail.com or shashank@iari.res.in. 

Geetha Iyer: Biology teacher, Former Head of Sahyadri School, KFI, Pune, Geetha Iyer is an ardent naturalist, and an Independent consultant in the twin fields of education and environment. She is the author of two books on insects and a scientific paper on  Preying Mantids. She writes extensively on insects, for  Frontline. and online portals such as The Mongabay India.  Observing moths and insects is one of her favourite hobby and she has studied them from different parts of India, from North and Eastern Himalayas to Western Ghats of Maharashtra and Tamilnadu and certain parts of Kerala and Karnataka. The backyard of her home in Suchindrum is her laboratory to observe and study biodiversity especially moths and other insects.Visit her website www.biologyeducation.net for more.

Rahul Joshi: I completed my Ph.D in Entomology from Punjabi University, Patiala, Punjab in 2013 and after that worked as Assistant Professor (Entomology) in Baba Farid College, Bathinda, Punjab till March 2017. Presently, I am a Scientist in Zoological Survey of India and dealing with Lepidoptera (Moths) of Gangetic Plains with special emphasis on Arctiid and Nolid moths. My main focus is to provide taxonomic treatment to moths so as to provide stability to these creatures at species level by studying their genitals. So far, I alongwith my co-authors, are able to stabilise Arctiinae from India by describing two new genera, 25 new species, one new sub species, suggested 14 new combinations, resurrected 6 old combinations, recorded 4 genera and 11 species for the first time from India. A Checklist of Indian Arctiinae was compiled and published in 2014. Furthermore, I am also trying to compile Checklists of all the moth families reported from India so as to provide a concrete picture of number of moth species present in India. I can be contacted at joshiarctiidae@gmail.com, https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Rahul_Joshi13. 

Navneet Singh: I am working as Scientist in Zoological Survey of India, GPRC, Patna. I received my Ph. D. on ‘Arctiid moths of Western Ghats’ from Punjabi University, Patiala. In addition to the publication of more than 80 research papers on the taxonomy of Indian moths, co-authored three important books on Indian Arctiidae: A checklist of Indian Arctiidae, Arctiid Moths of India, Vol. 1 & 2 and named more than 10 genera and 90 species of Indian moths. The Lepidoptera section of ZSI, Patna is extensively working on the ‘Moths of Gangetic Plains’ and housed a large number moth species of this area. For further information: nsgill007@gmail.com or https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Navneet_Singh8.

David Plotkin: I am an entomology graduate student in the Florida Museum of Natural History at the University of Florida. My main interest is the taxonomy and evolutionary history of geometrid moths. Although I have not had a chance to study Lepidoptera in India (yet), I am fascinated with the taxonomic diversity that has been found there. I can be contacted at plotkindelta@gmail.com. 

H. Sankararaman: I am working as Assistant Professor in the Department of Crop Protection, Vanavarayar Institute of Agriculture, Pollachi, Tamil Nadu. My research mainly focuses on taxonomy of parasitoids belonging to family Mymaridae and Leucospidae. Apart from Hymenoptera, I also study Lepidoptera, with special emphasis on ecology of moths, in relation to their host plants. I have been documenting life cycle of moths, especially from Western Ghats region, since 2013. My profile is available at https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Sankararaman_H. For any assistance email me at sankararaman05@gmail.com.

Muddasar: I am a PhD scholar, Department of Entomology, University of Horticultural Sciences Bagalkot (Karnataka). My area of interest is taxonomy of moths especially Noctuoidea. I have been studying moths since 2015 with a special interest to explore the moth fauna from Western Ghats. I can be contacted at mudasirmsr@gmail.com. 

Jahir Rayhan: I am a moth enthusiast from Bangladesh, pursuing my BSc in Zoology from Chittagong University. With personal curiosity and immense passion, I am studying the diversity of moth fauna from the Chittagong University campus and Bengal delta which includes Faridpur, Barisal and Sundarbans regions of Bangladesh. I am interested in the taxonomy and evolution of moths. Apart from this, I study Molecular evolution and Phylogenetics, Philosophy of Science and Greek Mythology. Despite having lots of difficulties here in Bangladesh, I follow the saying of Rabindranath Tagore 'If they pay no heed to your call, walk on your own'. I can be contacted at jrayhan97@gmail.com.

Anchal Sondhi: My field of interest is in the area of environment protection and nature education and conservation. I am a Founder Trustee, Titli Trust (http://www.titlitrust.org) and a longtime member of Kalpavriksh (http://www.kalpavriksh.org). I have conducted environment and nature workshops, environment awareness programs, slides shows and numerous similar activities with Kalpavriksh, Sanskriti Foundation-Delhi, WWF-Pune, CEE-Central, TERI New Delhi and other similar organizations. At Titli Trust, I work on urban biodiversity, conservation and livelihood programs, citizen science programs on birds, butterflies and moths and human-wildlife conflict mitigation. I have co-authored two books, Birds of Pune (Kalpavriksh) and Common Trees and Wild Flowers of Uttarakhand (Titli Trust). I can be contacted at anchal.tree@gmail.com. 

Sachin Arjun Gurule: I am working as Assistant Professor in P.G. Department of Zoology and Research Centre, MVP's K.R.T. Arts, B.H. Commerce and A.M. Science ( K.T.H.M.) College, Nashik, Maharashtra. I have completed my M.Sc. Zoology with Entomology as specialization subject in 2008. I received my Ph.D. on "Taxonomic study of moths from North Maharashtra, India" from Savitribai Phule Pune University, Pune in 2013.  I am recognized as a Ph.D. Research Guide affiliated to Savitribai Phule Pune University, Pune. My area of interest is taxonomy of moths and I am working in this field since 2008. I have put my sincere efforts to document moth faunal diversity from North Maharashtra and Goa which have been published in reputed peer-revewed journals. I believe in sharing resources and my knowledge in Indian moth fauna. I can be contacted at sachin.gurule@yahoo.com.

Vinod Borse: I have been working as a Senior Project Officer at BAIF Institute for Sustainable Livelihoods and Development for the last the 10 years. I started  observing insects (moths) in 2007.  So far I have observed moths and other insects at Hunsur, Mysore (Karnataka), Navrangpur (Odisha), Gadchiroli, A. Nagar, Gondia, Palghar (Maharashtra). I work on different projects such as sustainable conservation, grassland conservation, soil-moisture conservation, study of insect pollinators and pollination, enhancement of pollinators and conservation education awareness. I can be contacted at vinodborse36@gmail.com. 

Unnikrishnan M. P.: I am a BSc Zoology student at Payyanur College, Kerala, having a keen interest in the taxonomy and ecology of moths, particularly Geometriinae subfamily and Microlepidoptera. I have been helping on the identification process in various citizen science platforms. I came into the world of moths through documenting the moth diversity  at my homestead in North Kerala and I'm looking forward to contribute more towards the moth fauna of lndia. I can be contacted by email.

Pooja Chand: I am a completely outdoorsy wildlife enthusiast, currently working on a project as research fellow at Ashoka University, Haryana. I completed my Masters in Forestry from Forest research institute, Dehradun. Interdisciplinarity in my education has shaped my interest in plant-animal interactions and led me to study the diversity patterns of pollinators along an altitudinal gradient and different land-use systems in Western Himalayas. In my current project, I’m looking at the community-level effects of plant phenology and flower morphometrics on pollinator abundance in a semi-arid landscape. poojachand2408@gmail.com is my email address if you want to know more.

Afaq Ahmad Dar: I am pursuing my PhD from the Department of Zoology, Aligarh Muslim University. My research mainly focuses on the taxonomy, diversity, distribution and ecology of Moths from the Aravalli Hill Forest Range of Rajasthan and the Kashmir region. My profile is available at https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Afaq-Dar. For any assistance, email me at afaqamuzoo@gmail.com. 

Ramya Rajan: I am a Ph.D. scholar at, the Department of Zoology, Kannur University of Kerala. Family Erebidae is my area of expertise. I have a keen interest in taxonomy, molecular studies, and the mapping of moth diversity. Since 2017, I have been collecting data on moths, notably those from the Western Ghat region of Wayanad. I believe in sharing the knowledge and facts I have learned over the years about these stunning species. The best way to reach me is at rajanramyarajan@gmail.com.

This is an expanding list, so please let us know if you want to volunteer to develop this website, or want to nominate someone to be an editor or a reviewer.

Image contributors are mentioned on the images themselves, and they will be listed on a separate page, with links to their contributions, in due course.

Page citation

S. Sondhi 2024. ABOUT US: THE MOTHS OF INDIA TEAM . In Sondhi, S., Y. Sondhi, R.P. Singh, P. Roy and K. Kunte (Chief Editors). Butterflies of India, v. 3.72. Indian Foundation for Butterflies.