Integrative Taxonomic Analysis Doubles Number of Species in the Central Asian Butterfly Genus Lyela (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae, Satyrinae)

<i>Lyela</i> Swinhoe, 1908 is a small Central Asian butterfly genus, in which three species were previously recognized based on comparison of wing patterns. The present study, based on an extensive population sample across the entire range of <i>Lyela</i> and using integrative taxonomy methods, confirmed the monophyly of the genus and revealed the paraphyly of the most widespread species, <i>Lyela myops</i> sensu auct. The genus is shown to include six species, <i>L. myops</i> (Staudinger, 1881) (Kazakhstan, northern Kyrgyzstan, northwestern China, and southwestern Mongolia), <i>L. tashkumirica</i> Lukhtanov, 2024, <b>stat. nov</b>. (Fergana Valley in Kyrgyzstan), <i>L. babatagi</i> Tshikolovets, 1998, <b>stat. nov</b>. (southern Uzbekistan and eastern Turkmenistan), <i>L. tekkensis</i> (Staudinger, 1886), <b>stat. nov</b>. (southwestern Turkmenistan and northeastern Iran), <i>L. macmahoni</i> Swinhoe, 1908 (Pakistan and Afghanistan), and <i>L. amirica</i> Wyatt, 1961 (Afghanistan). Each of these species represents a monophyletic unity with respect to the <i>COI</i> gene and is separated from the other species by a distinct barcoding gap and structural differences in the male genitalia.