A new species of Heteroctenus from an interesting habitat in Cuba

 

Rolando Teruel and Sheyla Yong have recently published the discovery of a new species of Heteroctenus Pocock, 1893 (Buthidae) from several localities in the western Cuban province of Pinar del Río.

Heteroctenus turieli Teruel & Yong, 2023

The new species has a troglobitic life style occupying cracks, cavities and caves in mogotes in the area of distribution. The article includes an identification key for the genus in Cuba.

The article is in Spanish.

Abstract:
In the present contribution, a remarkable new species of scorpion of the genus Heteroctenus Pocock, 1893, is described from several localities in the Sierra de los Órganos range, in the western Cuban province of Pinar del Río. This new taxon represents a litophilic and troglophilic scorpion, which also fills a biogeographical gap so far existing in Cuban scorpiology: western Cuba remained the only region of the archipelago where no locally endemic or original species of this genus had ever been described or confirmed. Now, Heteroctenus accounts for seven species present in Cuba, all of them being endemics.

Reference:
Teruel R, Yong S. Una Nueva Especie de escorpion del genero Heteroctenus Pocock, 1893 (Scorpiones: Buthidae), de Cuba Occidental. Revista Iberica de Arachnologia. 2023(42):119-29. [Available from authors]

Family Buthidae

Amphibians and reptiles as prey of Heteroctenus junceus in Cuba

 

Scorpions prey on a wide variety of invertebrate prey and generally you can say that they will catch and eat any prey they can subdue without to much risk.  As most of you probably know, they can catch and eat vertebrate prey too as long as the can subdue them. Cases of predation on amphibians, reptiles and even small mammals have been reported.

Tomás M. Rodríguez-Cabrera and co-workers recently publised an article presenting obervations of the Cuban scorpion Heteroctenus junceus (Herbst, 1800) (Buthidae) catching and eating frogs and lizzards.

Abstract:
Vertebrate predation by scorpions has been scarcely documented in the literature. Contrary to large scorpions of the genera Centruroides, Hadrurus, Opistophthalmus, and Pandinurus from North America and Africa, which are capable of subduing even small rodents and bats, West Indian scorpions of the genera Centruroides, Heteroctenus, and Tityus seem to limit their prey to amphibians and reptiles. Herein we present new cases of a frog (Osteopilus septentrionalis; Hylidae) and three lizards (Anolis allisoni, A. ophiolepis, and A. sagrei; Dactyloidae) preyed upon by Heteroctenus junceus (Herbst, 1800), at the time we summarize all cases of vertebrate predation by scorpions in the region.

Reference:
Rodriguez-Cabrera TM, Savall EM, Teruel R. Amphibians and reptiles as prey of Heteroctenus junceus (Scorpiones: Buthidae), with a summary of vertebrate predation by scorpions in the West Indies. Euscorpius. 2021(342):1-6. [Open Access]

The origin of the buthid scorpion fauna of the Caribbean islands

The Caribbean islands have a large scorpion population where many species are endemic for this area. But how did this unique fauna originate? There have been three theories of the origins of the flora and fauna diversity seen in The Caribbean: 1. Connections via land bridges, 2. Vicariance events, 3. Overwater dispersal from continents and among islands.

Lauren Esposito and Lorenzo Prendini have now published a study investigating the biogeographical diversification of the New World buthid scorpion subfamily Centruroidinae Kraus, 1955 and trying to understand the origin of the Caribbean populations of these taxa.

The results of this study show that the centruroidine scorpions colonized the Caribbean islands on two independent occasions (35 mya ago from South America and the Greater Antilles and 20 mya ago North America, probably via Cuba). Interestingly, the results also point to a case of "reverse-colonization" event for the genus Heteroctenus Pocock, 1893. This genus seems to have a Caribbean ancestor, which subsequently colonized Central America and North America, and eventually re-colonized the Greater Antilles.

Abstract:
Scorpions are an excellent system for understanding biogeographical patterns. Most major scorpion lineages predate modern landforms, making them suitable for testing hypotheses of vicariance and dispersal. The Caribbean islands are endowed with a rich and largely endemic scorpion fauna, the origins of which have not been previously investigated with modern biogeographical methods. Three sets of hypotheses have been proposed to explain present patterns of diversity in the Caribbean: (1) connections via land bridges, (2) vicariance events, and (3) overwater dispersal from continents and among islands. The present study investigates the biogeographical diversification of the New World buthid scorpion subfamily Centruroidinae Kraus, 1955, a clade of seven genera and more than 110 species; infers the ancestral distributions of these scorpions; and tests the relative roles of vicariance and dispersal in the formation of their present distributions. A fossil calibrated molecular phylogeny was estimated with a Bayesian criterion to infer the dates of diversification events from which ancestral distributions were reconstructed, and the relative likelihood of models of vicariance vs. dispersal, calculated. Although both the timing of diversification and the ancestral distributions were congruent with the GAARlandia land-bridge hypothesis, there was no significant difference between distance-dependent models with or without the land-bridge. Heteroctenus Pocock, 1893, the Caribbean-endemic sister taxon of Centruroides Marx, 1890 provides evidence for a Caribbean ancestor, which subsequently colonized Central America and North America, and eventually re-colonized the Greater Antilles. This ‘reverse colonization’ event of a continent from an island demonstrates the importance of islands as a potential source of biodiversity.

Reference:
Esposito LA, Prendini L. Island Ancestors and New World Biogeography: A Case Study from the Scorpions (Buthidae: Centruroidinae). Sci Rep. 2019;9(1):3500. [Open Access]

The Scorpion Fauna of Mona Island, Puerto Rico and a few taxonomical changes

Rolando Teruel and co-workers have been able to examine new materials from Mona Island, Puerto Rico and have published an article with updates on the scorpion fauna of this island. In addition, the following taxonomical decissions have been made:

Centruroides mariaorum Santiago-Blay, 2009 is synonymized with C. bani Armas & Marcano Fondeur, 1988.

The previous synonymization of Rhopalurus virkkii Santiago-Blay, 2009 with Heteroctenus abudi (Armas et Marcano Fondeur, 1987) is confirmed.

Abstract:
The scorpion fauna of the small Mona Island (= Isla de Mona), located roughly midway between Hispaniola and Puerto Rico and administratively belonging to the latter, is herein revised. Three species are confirmed to occur: the buthids Centruroides bani Armas et Marcano Fondeur, 1987 and Heteroctenus abudi (Armas et Marcano Fondeur, 1987), plus the diplocentrine scorpionid Cazierius garridoi Armas, 2005. The previously recorded Heteronebo sp. is reexamined and deemed a mislabeled specimen of Heteronebo portoricensis Francke, 1978 from adjacent Puerto Rico. Also, Centruroides mariaorum Santiago-Blay, 2009 is demonstrated to be a junior synonym of C. bani (implying the first demonstrable records of the latter from both Mona Island and Puerto Rico) and Rhopalurus virkkii Santiago-Blay, 2009 is confirmed as a junior synonym of H. abudi. A thorough photographic complement and supplementary ecological and distributional data are provided for every species.

Reference:
Teruel R, Rivera MJ, Sanchez AJ. The Scorpion Fauna of Mona Island, Puerto Rico (Scorpiones: Buthidae, Scorpionidae). Euscorpius. 2017(250):1-15. [Open Access]

There and back again: Revalidation of three recently synonymized Cuban species of Heteroctenus

Luis de Armas recently published an article where he revalidated three recently synonymized Cuban species of Heteroctenus Pocock, 1893 (Buthidae) (the three species previously belonged to Rhopalurus Thorell, 1876). This means that the following species are considered valid:

Heteroctenus aridicola (Teruel et Armas, 2012)

Heteroctenus melloleitaoi (Teruel et Armas, 2006)

Heteroctenus granulimanus (Teruel, 2006)

In addition, the buthid subfamily Rhopalurusinae Bücherl, 1971 is regarded as a junior synonym of Centruroidinae Kraus, 1955.

For more information about the synonymization of the three species, see my blog post from yesterday.

Abstract:
The scorpion genus Heteroctenus Pocock, 1893 was restored from synonymy with Rhopalurus in a recent revision by Esposito et al. (2017). Here, we restore two eastern Cuban species Heteroctenus melloleitaoi (Teruel et Armas, 2006) and H. aridicola (Teruel et Armas, 2012) as valid species. They were synonymized by Esposito et al. (2017) under Heteroctenus junceus (Herbst, 1800), without examination of corresponding specimens and with erroneous interpretations of some aspects of the original descriptions. Heteroctenus granulimanus (Teruel, 2006) is also restored as a valid species. The subfamily Rhopalurusinae Bücherl, 1971 is regarded as a junior synonym of Centruroidinae Kraus, 1955.

Reference:
De Armas LF. Revalidation of Three Recently Synonymized Cuban Species of Heteroctenus Pocock, 1893 (Scorpiones: Buthidae: Centruroidinae). Euscorpius. 2017(248):1-3.

Family Buthidae

A systematic revision of the neotropical club-tailed scorpions, Physoctonus, Rhopalurus, and Troglorhopalurus has been published

Lauren Esposito and several co-workers have recently published a major systematic revision of the neotropical club-tailed scorpions, Physoctonus Mello-Leitao, 1934, Rhopalurus Thorell, 1876 and Troglorhopalurus Lourenço, Baptista & Giupponi, 2004 (Buthidae). This is a major study with many taxonomical changes. I have tried to sum up the main results here:

New genera:

Ischnotelson Esposito, Yamaguti, Souza, Pinto da Roacha & Prendini, 2017 (Brazil).

Jaguajir Esposito, Yamaguti, Souza, Pinto da Roacha & Prendini, 2017 (North and northeastern South America).

Heteroctenus Pocock, 1893 (revalidated from synonymization).

New species:

Ischnotelson peruassu Esposito, Yamaguti, Souza, Pinto da Roacha & Prendini, 2017 (Brazil).

Physoctonus striatus Esposito, Yamaguti, Souza, Pinto da Roacha & Prendini, 2017 (Brazil).

Rhopalurus ochoai Esposito, Yamaguti, Souza, Pinto da Roacha & Prendini, 2017 (Venezuela).

New combinations:

All of these species previously belonged to the genus Rhopalurus Thorell, 1876.

Heteroctenus abudi (Armas and Marcano Fondeur, 1987)

Heteroctenus bonettii (Armas, 1999)

Heteroctenus garridoi (Armas, 1974)

Heteroctenus gibarae (Teruel, 2006)

Heteroctenus princeps (Karsch, 1879)

Ischnotelson guanambiensis (Lenarducci et al., 2005)

Jaguajir agamemnon (C.L. Koch, 1839)

Jaguajir pintoi (Mello-Leitão, 1932)

Jaguajir rochae (Borelli, 1910)

Troglorhopalurus lacrau (Lourenço and Pinto-da-Rocha 1997)

Synonymizations:

"=" means "synonymized with".

Rhopalurus crassicauda Caporiacco, 1947 = Rhopalurus laticauda Thorell, 1876.

Rhopalurus amazonicus Lourenço, 1986 = Rhopalurus laticauda Thorell, 1876.

Rhopalurus crassicauda paruensis Lourenço, 2008 = Rhopalurus laticauda Thorell, 1876.

Rhopalurus brejo Lourenço, 2014 = Troglorhopalurus lacrau (Lourenço and Pinto-da-Rocha, 1997).

Rhopalurus acromelas Lutz and Mello, 1922 = Jaguajir agamemnon (C.L. Koch, 1839).

Rhopalurus melleipalpus Lutz and Mello, 1922 = Jaguajir agamemnon (C.L. Koch, 1839).

Rhopalurus iglesiasi Werner, 1927 = Jaguajir agamemnon (C.L. Koch, 1839).

Rhopalurus lambdophorus Mello-Leitão, 1932 = Jaguajir agamemnon (C.L. Koch, 1839).

Rhopalurus dorsomaculatus Prado, 1938 = Jaguajir agamemnon (C.L. Koch, 1839).

Rhopalurus goiasensis Prado, 1940 = Jaguajir agamemnon (C.L. Koch, 1839).

Rhopalurus aridicola Teruel and Armas, 2012 = Heteroctenus junceus (Herbst, 1800).

Rhopalurus melloleitaoi Teruel and Armas, 2006 = Heteroctenus junceus (Herbst, 1800).

Rhopalurus granulimanus Teruel, 2006 = Heteroctenus gibarae (Teruel, 2006).

Rhopalurus virkkii Santiago-Blay, 2009 = Heteroctenus abudi (Armas and Marcano Fondeur, 1987).

The article has an updated identification key for the involved taxa.

Abstract:

Reference:
Esposito LA, Yamaguti HY, Souza CA, Pinto da Rocha R, Prendini L. Systematic revision of the neotropical club-tailed scorpions, Physoctonus, Rhopalurus, and Troglorhopalurus, revalidation of Heteroctenus, and descriptions of two new genera and three new species (Buthidae: Rhopalurusinae). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. 2017(415):1-134. [Open Access]

Thanks to Ricardo Pinto-da-Rocha and Carlos Turiel for sending me this article!

Family Buthidae