Entomologist Names New Moth Species After Wife on 42nd Anniversary
A pink and yellow moth found across the eastern Mediterranean has been identified as a new species after being mistaken for a common relative for over a century. Dr Peter Huemer of the Tyrolean State Museum Ferdinandeum in Innsbruck, Austria, used DNA barcoding to reveal genetic differences of more than 6 percent from the oak carcina, a moth first described in 1775. Analysis of the insects' sexual organs confirmed the molecular findings. The new species, with a wingspan of about 2 centimeters, has been officially named Carcina ingridmariae after Huemer's wife, Ingrid Maria, on their 42nd wedding anniversary. Dr Huemer, who has described more than 200 species from Europe over 35 years, called it the prettiest species he has encountered in his career. Its larvae likely feed on various oak species, similar to its lookalike, though studies on its biology and distribution are ongoing.
DNA barcoding continues to reveal distinct species among well studied European insect populations, even when they have been hiding in plain sight for more than a century.
Source: Striking new moth species, hidden for a century, named to honor 42 years of marriage (eurekalert.org). Spotted via Good Good Good.
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