A nocturnal chase: 'The bug lady' to hold a moth camp in October in Mumbai

Moths are the mysterious elder cousins of butterflies, that are equally interesting, but yet highly underappreciated. They are seen as boring, brown insects, which couldn't be farther from the truth," says Dr V Shubhalaxmi, acknowledged as India's first woman lepidopterist (specialising in the collection and study of butterflies and moths) and researcher at the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS). "Moths have character. They are incredibly beautiful, and have some intricate patterns on their wings," she says. To encourage recording and raising awareness of these winged insects, 'the bug lady' as she is popularly known, will hold a moth camp in October.

The moth camp will be a nocturnal activity, where participants will be taught how to identify the type of moths and study their behaviour patterns. The following morning participants will be taken on a caterpillar trail. "Observing moths is very easy; you don't even have to actively look for them. We use the light sheet method, where the moths settle on the standard cotton sheet," she says. Once the light falls on them, it becomes easier to observe the patterns on them. "They look ethereal under the spotlight. That's when you notice their head, legs and wings," says Shubhalaxmi, who started working with the SGNP in 1993.

A pioneer among the handful of women in the field, she has recorded 419 moth species in Maharashtra and 500 in Arunachal Pradesh in the past decade. "It is sad that no systematic effort has been made to study moths, which are important in the eco-system. In urban centres like Mumbai, they are disappearing because of lack of open space and indiscriminate use of pesticides even in gardening," she laments. But the camps, she adds, are her way of raising awareness.

Where: Nature Information Centre, Sanjay Gandhi National Park, National Park - Kanheri Caves Rd, Borivli (East)
When: Oct 1-2, 5 PM to 10.30 PM
Entry: Rs 1,700 per head
Call: 28868686