Just a few decades ago, what naturalist Trupaank Gautam is about to tell us might have garnered some strange looks. “The beetles are underrated,” he declares. It comes as some relief that he’s talking about the (mostly) friendly bugs you’ll find at home, in gardens and Mumbai’s vast green covers. “If there’s a month dedicated to butterflies [September], why not for this expansive family of bugs that exhibit exceptional diversity? I’m hoping to turn August into beetle month aka Beetle Bash,” he reveals.

Firefly, Click Beetle and Leaf Beetle

A Zoology alumnus from KJ Somaiya College of Science and Commerce (KJSCSC) and a Master’s in Wildlife Conservation student, Gautam’s story with bugs goes way back. “I met my mentor naturalist and researcher Dr Amol Patwardhan in KJSCSC which sparked an interest for insects in me. In February 2024, I started interning at the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) to learn from the best teacher — nature,” he tells us.