Mineralogy, moths and lepidopterology? »
Jim Murowchick
Associate professor and chair
Geosciences
College of Arts and Sciences
By day, Murowchick is concerned with the study of minerals, but by night, he photographs moths and other insects that are attracted to mercury vapor lamps. As co-founder of Idalia Society of Mid-American Lepidopterists, he watches for moths at lights around campgrounds and nature centers. Photographed and magnified, the little brown blurs are transformed into intricate patterns and colors under Murowchick’s camera and lights. “Passers-by are often curious about what we’re doing, and they are usually surprised that not all moths are plain brown and boring,” he says. “My job as a teacher and geologist is complemented by my interest in other aspects of nature, and when I take students to the field, I might have a geology pick in one hand, a butterfly net in the other and a camera around my neck.”