Core Members.
President
Takashi Yokochi, MD, PhD
Born in August 1957
Ph.D. in Science (Kyushu University)
Ph.D. in Medicine (Nagoya City University)
Professionally, he is a physician specializing in respiratory medicine and currently serves as a board member of The Japanese Society of CT Screening, where he also chaired the 31st Annual Meeting. His entomological research focuses on the tribe Adoliadini (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae), particularly species distributed throughout Asia and Oceania, and he has conducted extensive field surveys across Southeast Asia. He is a former President of The Butterfly Society of Japan.
His hobbies include listening to music, especially 1960s–1970s rock associated with Bob Dylan and The Band, as well as Irish music.
Core Member / Editor-in-Chief, AIRS Journal of Entomology
Akira Uno
Born in October 1970
Professionally, he is a local government employee engaged in technical work related to agriculture. Influenced by his father, who was also involved in butterfly research, he has been collecting butterflies in the field since childhood. He is particularly interested in compiling and reorganizing past knowledge through literature-based studies. To date, he has published reviews on Taiwanese butterfly research and studies on the history of Zephyrus research. In recent years, he has developed a particular interest in the ecology of Asian butterflies.
He enjoys visiting botanical gardens and traditional Japanese gardens. His musical tastes are broad, although he especially favors heavier music produced up to the early 2000s.
Core Member / Associate Editor-in-Chief, AIRS Journal of Entomology
Takashi Hasegawa
Born in November 1969
Municipal government employee (Sagamihara City, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan).
He conducts research activities throughout Asia focusing on the taxonomy, ecology, and biogeography of the subtribe Theclina (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae). His publications include the edited volume The Zephyrus Butterflies of Japan in the Monthly Mushi – Illustrated Insect Series 14 (Mushi-sha), and he is also a co-author of Field Guide to the Butterflies of Japan (Seibundo Shinkosha).
His hobbies include reading and watching films. He is particularly fond of science fiction movies, being both a devoted Star Wars fan and a Star Trek enthusiast. The banya (Russian sauna culture) he first experienced during expeditions to Russia has since become part of his regular routine. His favorite foods include fresh oysters, dojo loach, and chicken skin.
Core Member
Kotaro Saito, PhD
Born in August 1977
Ph.D. in Psychology (2006)
Representative Director of Koyo Seiki Co., Ltd., engaged in accounting, personnel management, and human resource development. During his academic career, his research specialties included learning, memory, comparative cognition, pharmacology, and neuroscience.
His entomological research focuses on the morphological taxonomy of Southeast Asian butterflies (Lepidoptera). To date, he has described 38 extant species and one extinct species.
His hobbies include mahjong and birdwatching.
Core Member
Akiko Kubota
Born in the former city of Shimizu, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan
Municipal government employee
Member of the Council, The Lepidopterological Society of Japan
Member, The Butterfly Society of Japan
Since childhood, she has collected butterflies in the mountains of Shizuoka. In recent years, she has traveled to Vietnam, Nepal, Taiwan, and other regions to observe Zephyrus butterflies. Within Japan, she also enjoys butterfly observation in the Tanzawa Mountains and hiking with her father, a devoted enthusiast of Pidonia beetles.
She was fortunate to be involved in the discovery of a new species of Thermozephyrus, for which the specific name kubotae was dedicated to her. Her activities to date include supervising Science Education News, publishing reports on the Zephyrus butterflies of the Tanzawa Mountains, and contributing articles to The Nature & Insects.
Her hobbies include beachcombing, orchestral composition, and conducting.
Core Member
Takashi Miyagawa
Born in February 1974
Insect researcher. He specializes in the collection and provision of accurately documented insect specimens personally collected in the field, primarily in Japan, Vietnam, and Peru. To date, he has discovered numerous new species and subspecies of Lepidoptera, Cicindelinae and Cetoniinae. Through the activities of AIRS, he hopes to contribute, even in a small way, to a better understanding of insect diversity and fauna. His favorite insects are members of the genus Necydalis (Cerambycidae).