Surprise! - A new Buthus species from Cyprus

It has been rumored for some time, but now it has finally become published. Yagmur, Koc and Lourenco has discovered a second species on Cyprus in addition to Mesobuthus cyprius. And the new species belongs to Buthus and not Mesobuthus.

Buthus kunti Yagmur, Koc & Lourenco, 2011 (Buthidae)

Based on the inquires I've gotten from peoples finding scorpions in their houses in Cyprus, scorpions are quite common (but not often seen by peoples), at least in southern parts. These have probably been M. cyprius, as the new species has so far only been reported from northern Cyprus. It will be interesting to know how widespread the new species is.

Interestingly, Cyprus is the only area were members of Buthus and Mesobuthus have been found together.

Abstract:
During the last decade, several contributions to the genus Buthus Leach, 1815 (family Buthidae) and especially to the ‘Buthus occitanus’ species complex were proposed. These contributions led to the definition of several species, previously considered only as subspecies or varieties, and also to the description of new species. In the present study, the questionable presence of the genus Buthus in the Cyprus is rediscussed and a new species Buthus kunti sp. n. is described.

Reference:
Yagmur EA, Koc H, Lourenco WR. A new species of Buthus Leach, 1815 from Cyprus (Scorpiones, Buthidae). ZooKeys. 2011;115:27-38. [Free fulltext]

Thanks to Ersen Yagmur and Gerard Dupre for sending me this paper!

Family Buthidae