The supposedly unmistakable mistaken: Carcina ingridmariae sp. nov., a surprising example of overlooked diversity from Europe and the Near East (Lepidoptera, Peleopodidae)

Carcina ingridmariae sp. nov. is described from the eastern Mediterranean region (Greece, Croatia, Cyprus, Türkiye). The species differs strikingly from the so far only representative of the genus in the Western Palearctic, C. quercana (Fabricius, 1775), in the DNA barcode and the male and female genitalia, but less conspicuously in habitual characteristics. All diagnostically relevant characters are figured and discussed.

The usefulness of comprehensive genetic inventories for recognizing species that have been inadequately considered because they are regarded as unmistakable is discussed.