Culicoides obsoletus the name of a species (and a species group) of midges in the subgenus Avaritia. According to a molecular phylogeny, Avaritia is monophyletic, and Culicoides obsoletus, Culicoides scoticus and Culicoides chiopterus should be part of the Obsoletus complex whereas Culicoides dewulfi should be excluded from it.

The species group covers five closely related species:

Sometimes, a reference can be made to the Obsoletus complex. This complex consists of three species, namely:

If reference is made only to Culicoides obsoletus s.str., it means only

Culicoides obsoletus is thought to be the main vector of the BTV8 outbreak in Northern Europe.