Peter Smetacek works on the taxonomy and zoo geography of Indian Lepidoptera. He is also interested in exploring the potential of Lepidoptera as bio-indicators of ecological functions and groundwater.

The species is the fundamental unit of classification in biology. The concept of a species is generally understood to imply a group of freely interbreeding individuals that can produce fertile offspring. In the case of butterflies, during the 18th and 19th centuries, species were distinguished by the structure of the head, legs, and wing veins, besides the pattern and colouration on the wings and body. During the 20th century, however, the study of chitinous parts of the genitalia, especially of males proved a very useful diagnostic tool for identifying and differentiating species. This approach gained ground rapidly, and by the end of the second decade of the 20th century had been universally accepted. The theoretical basis of this is that the specialized structures of the genitalia prevent the successful copulation of unrelated individuals from different species. In fact, it was often seen that butterflies from different locations, even those separated by great distances or natural barriers such as mountains, had identical genitalia, although superficially they may have looked sufficiently different to have been awarded specific status by earlier workers. Therefore, there was a great deal of re-shuffling of butterfly names.

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Address for Correspondence
Peter Smetacek 
Jones Estate 
P.O. Bhimtal, Nainital 
Uttaranchal 263 136, India.