Indian Foundation for Butterflies – Butterflies of India

Krushnamegh Kunte: I am a naturalist broadly interested in all aspects of the biological world, from species communities to genes. 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 Center for Biological Sciences (NCBS), Bengaluru (=Bangalore), as a Ramanujan Fellow. My research lab at NCBS investigates the evolution and organization of biological diversity with a special focus on speciation and morphological diversification in butterflies. Indian butterflies has been my passion for most of my life, and I have studied them since 1991, extensively surveying populations in the Himalaya, NE India and the Western Ghats. I have authored dozens of research papers and two books on various aspects of the biology of Indian butterflies. Read more at http://biodiversitylab.org or contact me by This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it if you want to learn more about my research and writing, the Indian Foundation for Butterflies, this website or Indian butterflies.

Rudra Prasad Das: I was born and brought up in a small village in Howrah District, West Bengal. I completed my M.Sc. in Zoology from University of Calcutta, and now I am doing doctoral research on butterfly communities of West Bengal. I am also documenting butterfly diversity in north-eastern India. Apart from my work on butterflies, I love birds, damselflies, dragonflies and spiders, and I have briefly studied red panda and Manipur brow-antlered deer. For the last five years I have worked with several NGOs such as Nature Mates, iREBEL and Prakriti Samsad in the field of nature conservation, animal welfare and wildlife management in rural and urban areas. Macro insect photography and trekking are my hobbies. This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it me if you want to learn more about my work.

Hemant Ogale: I am a mechanical engineer by training and I worked at Bajaj Auto in Pune for seven years before I found my calling. In 2003 I returned to my hometown Amboli in south-western Maharashtra and started a small resort, Whistling Woods. Since then I have been documenting amphibians, reptiles, plants and butterflies in the Amboli area, which is quite biodiverse. Since 2009 I have started to study butterfly diversity of Amboli at various altitudes, their early stages, larval host plants and variation in preferred host plants. I am a member of the Malabar Nature Conservation Club, an NGO from Amboli, which conducts environment awareness programs in the local school and elsewhere in our town.

Gaurav Agavekar: I have completed my BSc in Microbiology from University of Pune and currently I am working in Dr. Krushnamegh Kunte's lab at NCBS, Bengaluru, as a project trainee. During this academic hiatus, I am trying to get some research experience and learn various techniques used in Biology. As a young naturalist I have always been fascinated by the diversity we have among Indian butterflies which encouraged me to start studying butterflies seriously from the past couple of years. My main interests are ecology, evolution and genetics of butterflies.

Rohan Lovalekar: I survey and monitor butterflies in the northern Western Ghats. I have especially been studying their species richness and seasonal occurrences, and swarming and migratory behavior of Crow (Euploea) and Blue Tiger (Tirumala) butterflies. I am based in Chiplun in the coastal Konkan region of  Maharashtra, and work at the Bank of Maharashtra. I also volunteer with the  Chiplun-based nature-related NGO, Sahyadri Nisarga Mitra.

Amol Patwardhan: I am an entomologist by training (M.Sc.), and I studied the taxonomy of click beetles (family Elateridae) for my PhD. I have four new species and one new genus to my credit. I was introduced to butterflies just before my M.Sc., when I was using an SLR camera with a magnifying glass held in front of a manual 50mm lens to get macro shots. Days passed and like any macro photographer, I evolved from film camera to digital field. Since then I have visited many places in India to photograph butterflies. Currently I am working in Mumbai on mangrove conservation. Visit my blog  or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it me to learn more about my work or to see my pictures.

Vivek Sarkar: I am from Coochbehar, northern West Bengal, where my mother inspired me to observe butterflies and my father provided opportunities to visit the nearby forests at an early age. From 2006 I started photo-documentation of Bengal butterflies, continuing on during my undergraduate years in Bangaluru to document butterflies of Bangalore University Jnanabharti Campus, and Agasthia International Campus in Kuppam, Andhra Pradesh. Later I studied butterflies in Nagarahole National Park and surrounding areas of Kodagu District of Karnataka. Recently I finished my Masters in Wildlife Biology from North Orissa University, and now I am engaged in wildlife and conservation projects in Odisha. In 2012 I published my first book, "Butterflies of Bonai", which is the first field guide on Odisha butterflies. This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it if you want to know more about my work.

Sanjay Sondhi: I am Dehradun-based naturalist with an interest in writing and photography. Though an engineer by qualification, I quit my job in 2008 to devote myself to nature conservation and environment protection. I am mainly interested in birds, butterflies and herpetofauna. I have co-authored a book, "Birds of Pune" (Kalpavriksh/CEE publication), and am currently co-writing another book, "Amphibians and Reptiles of Uttarakhand", which will go in print shortly. I am Founder Trustee of TITLI TRUST and associated with Kalpavriksh, an environmental NGO. I spend my time studying, photographing and writing about nature as well as working on conservation projects with a focus on western and eastern Himalaya. My work includes faunal surveys, conservation education, PA management plans, and man-animal conflicts. If you want to know more about my work, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it me.

Milind Bhakare: I am a consulting eye surgeon from Satara, western Maharashtra. I have a special interest in the biodiversity of the Satara region, which I have been documenting for the past five years. I have delivered several lectures on insect biodiversity of Satara in schools and colleges and arranged many photo exhibitions on this topis. I have been documenting butterflies around Satara for the past three years, with special focus on studying life cycles of butterflies. This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it if you want to learn more about my work.