Is Robinsonia praphoea Dognin, 1906 really present in French Guiana?

The genus Robinsonia is commonly present in French Guiana with at least ten species. One of the most common is traditionally identified as Robinsonia praphoea Dognin, 1906. This species was described on a single male specimen collected on Rio Inambari, La Oroya, Carabaya in the Puno department (Peru), the type is housed in Washington (see Fig. 1) and has been dissected by A. Watson in 1971 (see plate 120 a, b in Watson, 1971, slide reference AW2 and a fresh dissection below in Fig. 2). During a routine survey of the French Guiana Arctiinae, two males collected in the coastal area (Kaw Road) were dissected and we were very surprised to find genitalia completely different from R. praphoea despite very similar habitus. Moreover within BOLD it was possible to find one sequence of a specimen similar to the type of R. praphoea and collected by G. Brehm around 100 km to the West of the type locality and at the same altitude (see Fig. 1). This sequence differs by at least 7.8 % from three sequences obtained from French Guiana specimens (see Fig. 3). It then appears that the Robinsonia species commonly found in French Guiana is not R. praphoea but a new species which is described below under the name Robinsonia simulans Laguerre, sp. nov.

Sequenced specimen of Robinsonia praphoea (BIN = BOLD:ADF7497). 1 ♂. PERU. Cuzco, Cosñipata, 28-VIII- 2016, 724 m, -12.9018, -71.4117, G. Brehm leg., Gen. ML 3291, sample-ID: Pe-Arc-0225, Process-ID: PEMOB102-17. In PMJ.