New article on the scorpions of Iran with an identification key for all species

 Iran is a large coutry with a big scorpion diversity counting 68 species (41 endemic to Iran). There have been an increase in publications on Iranian scorpions in the last decade, and now Hossein Barahoei and co-workers have published a major annotated checklist of the scorpion fauna of Iran and an identification key for all species.

Abstract:
An updated checklist of the scorpiofauna of Iran is presented. The checklist is based on records of scorpion species which their presence have been confirmed in Iran through field expeditions, examination of scorpion collections, literature review, and personal communications with researchers. According to the presented checklist the scorpion fauna of Iran consists of 68 valid species (41 endemic to Iran) belonging to 19 genera and four families and 6 doubtful reports (belong family Buthidae). Hemiscorpius gaillardi (Vachon, 1974) and Compsobuthus jakesi Kovařík, 2003 reported for the first time from Hormozgan province. Odontobuthus tavighiae Navidpour et al., 2013 collected for the first time from Fars province. Kraepelinia palpator (Birula, 1903) and O. tirgari Mirshamsi et al., 2013 were new records for South Khorasan province fauna. The list is dominated by members of the family Buthidae (58 species) with 85.3% of total species. The level of regional endemism exceeds 60.3%. A dichotomic identification key.

Reference:
Barahoei H, Navidpour S, Aliabadian M, Siahsarvie R, Mirshamsi O. Scorpions of Iran (Arachnida: Scorpiones): Annotated checklist, DELTA database and identification key. Journal of Insect Biodiversity and Systematics. 2020;6(4):375-474. [Open Access]

Thanks to Gerard Dupre for sending me this article!