Published online by Cambridge University Press: 18 March 2019
Anania hortulata (Linnaeus, 1758) (Lepidoptera: Crambidae: Pyraustinae) is a strikingly coloured, common, and widespread species that has long been recognised as a single species widely distributed in Asia, Europe, and North America. Using a combination of molecular and morphometric data, this study resolved that A. hortulata is actually a species complex of two superficially indistinguishable species. Phylogenetic and network analyses based on the mitochondrial COI gene discriminated lineages from all major geographical regions of China as distinct, A. sinensis Yang and Landry new species, whereas A. hortulata occurs in Central Asia, Europe, and North America. Nuclear gene (CAD) and morphological differences in the genital characters provided further evidence for the separation of A. hortulata and A. sinensis.
Subject editor: Sikes Derek