Ananteridae is raised to family status

 

In a recent article, Eric Ythier has raised the subfamily Ananterinae Pocock, 1900 (in family Buthidae) to family status. Seven extant genera with associated species are transferred to the new family (see family page for more details).

Ananteridae Pocock, 1900

        Ananteris Thorell, 1891

        Ananteroides Borelli, 1911 

        Himalayotityobuthus Lourenço, 1997

        Lychasioides Vachon, 1974

        Microananteris Lourenço, 2003

        Tityobuthus Pocock, 1893

        Troglotityobuthus Lourenço, 2000 

Three extinct genera are also included in this family.

        Palaeotityobuthus Lourenço & Weitschat, 2000

        Palaeoananteris Lourenço & Weitschat, 2001

        Archaeoananteroides Lourenço, 2016

A new species of Ananteris Thorell, 1891 (Ananteridae) from Brazil is described in the article.

        Ananteris lourencoi Ythier, 2024

Abstract:
A new species belonging to the genus Ananteris Thorell, 1891 (family Ananteridae Pocock, 1900, stat. n.) is described on the basis of one male specimen collected at the Pico da Neblina, Brazil. Ananteris lourencoi sp. n. was collected between 2000-2300 m altitude, representing to our knowledge the highest altitude record for the genus Ananteris. The description of this new species brings further evidence about the biogeographic patterns of distribution presented by most species of the genus Ananteris, which are highly endemic in most natural formations of South America. This new scorpion taxon represents the 97th described species among the currently recognized species for the genus Ananteris (the 31st described from Brazil) and the 128th species described for the family Ananteridae stat. n. which is hereby confirmed as a valid family. The composition, distribution and altitude for the members of this family are discussed.

Reference:
Ythier E. A new high-altitude scorpion species of the genus Ananteris Thorell, 1891 (Scorpiones: Ananteridae) from the Pico da Neblina, Brazil. Faunitaxys. 2024;12(19):1-9. [Open Access]

Thanks to Eric for sending me this article!

Family Ananteridae

Family Buthidae

The genus Anuroctonus is transferred into a new family Anuroctonidae

 

The studies of higher-level classification of scorpions are far from resolved (superfamilies and families). Carlos E. Santib
anez-L
opez and co-workers have recently published a study on the monophyly and phylogenetic placement of Chactidae.

The results have lead to a decision to create a new family Anuroctonidae Santibanez-Lopez, Ojanguren-Affilastro, Graham & Sharma, 2023 and move the genus Anuroctonus Pocock, 1893 with its two species  from Chactidae to the new family. 

The authors state that this is only a first step in the analysis of Chactidae's position and more studies are necessary before we have the final answers.

Abstract:
Scorpions are ancient and historically renowned for their potent venom. Traditionally, the systematics of this group of arthropods was supported by morphological characters, until recent phylogenomic analyses (using RNAseq data) revealed most of the higher-level taxa to be non-monophyletic. While these phylogenomic hypotheses are stable for almost all lineages, some nodes have been hard to resolve due to minimal taxonomic sampling (e.g. family Chactidae). In the same line, it has been shown that some nodes in the Arachnid Tree of Life show disagreement between hypotheses generated using transcritptomes and other genomic sources such as the ultraconserved elements (UCEs). Here, we compared the phylogenetic signal of transcriptomes vs. UCEs by retrieving UCEs from new and previously published scorpion transcriptomes and genomes, and reconstructed phylogenies using both datasets independently. We reexamined the monophyly and phylogenetic placement of Chactidae, sampling an additional chactid species using both datasets. Our results showed that both sets of genome-scale datasets recovered highly similar topologies, with Chactidae rendered paraphyletic owing to the placement of Nullibrotheas allenii. As a first step toward redressing the systematics of Chactidae, we establish the family Anuroctonidae (new family) to accommodate the genus Anuroctonus.

Reference:
Santibáñez-López CE, Ojanguren-Affilastro AA, Graham MR, Sharma PP. Congruence between ultraconserved element-based matrices and phylotranscriptomic datasets in the scorpion Tree of Life. Cladistics. 2023. [Subscription required for full text]

Thanks to Matt Simon and Victor Fet for informing me about this article!

Family Anuroctonidae

New fossil scorpion taxa

 

I have learned about two new articles on scorpion fossil taxa. The Scorpion Files only includes extant taxa, but here are the new fossil taxa reported in the two articles cited below.

New family:

Protochactidae Lourenço, Magnani & Stockar, 2022

New genus:

Protochactas Lourenço, Magnani & Stockar, 2022

New species:

Protochactas furreri Lourenço, Magnani & Stockar, 2022 (Limestone, Southern Alps)

Chaerilobuthus brandti Lourenço, 2022 (Amber, Myanmar)

Abstract:

Paper 1:
One new family, genus, and species of fossil scorpion are described from the Meride Limestone (Ladinian, Middle Triassic) of Monte San Giorgio (Southern Alps). This new discovery brings further evidence for the recovery of terrestrial forms of scorpions, following the Late-Permian mass extinction. The new fossil family proposed at present can, once again, be classified within extant familial groups; in this case the superfamily Chactoidea (sensu Lourenço). These results reinforce the proposition that modern scorpions may belong to lineages present at least for 240 Myr.

Paper 2:
A further new species of fossil scorpion belonging to the genus Chaerilobuthus Lourenço & Beigel, 2011 is described from Early Cretaceous Burmite. Chaerilobuthus brandti Lourenço sp. n., is the 12th species to be described for this genus confirming its speciose character. The new species equally shows quite distinct characters when compared to the previous known species, confirming therefore the existence of an important morphological variability within Chaerilobuthus.

References:

Paper 1:
Magnani F, Stockar R, Lourenço WR. A new family, genus and species of fossil scorpion from the Meride Limestone (Middle Triassic) of Monte San Giorgio (Switzerland). Faunitaxys. 2022;10(24):1-7. [Open Access]

Paper 2:
Lourenço WR, Velten J. The remarkable variability of the genus Chaerilobuthus Lourenço & Beigel, 2011 (Scorpiones: Chaerilobuthidae) and description of a new species from Early Cretaceous Burmite. Faunitaxys. 2022;10(10):1-6. [Open Access]

Thanks to Nicolas Machiavel for informing me about these two articles!

Systematic revision of the Asian Forest Scorpions (Heterometrinae simon, 1879) with many taxonomical changes in the family Scorpionidae

 

As I posted in a previous blog post, Lorenzo Prendini and Stephanie Loria published a huge systematic revision of the Asian Forest Scorpions (Heterometrinae Simon, 1879) in October. This revision is mainly focused on the genus Heterometrus Ehrenberg, 1828  which is split into several new genera, but has also taxonomical decisions for other taxa in Scorpionidae.

Here are some of the main higlights from this impressive work.

Rugodentidae Bastawade et al., 2005 is raised to family status (from subfamily status) including the genus Rugodentus Bastawade et al., 2005.

Pandinopsis Vachon, 1974. Raised to genus status.

Pandipalpus Rossi, 2015. Raised to family status.


Chersonesometrus Couzijn, 1978. Raised to genus status.

Chersonesometrus bastawadei Prendini & Loria, 2020. New species from India.

Chersonesometrus hendersoni Prendini & Loria, 2020. New species from India.

Chersonesometrus nathanorum Prendini & Loria, 2020. New species from India.

Chersonesometrus shivashankari Prendini & Loria, 2020. New species from India.

Deccanometrus Prendini & Loria, 2020. New genus.

Deccanometrus obscurus (Couzijn, 1981). Raised to species status.


Gigantometrus Couzijn, 1978. Raised to genus status.

Javanimetrus Couzijn, 1981. Raised to genus status.

Sahyadrimetrus Prendini & Loria, 2020. New genus.

Sahyadrimetrus mathewi Prendini & Loria, 2020. New species from India.

Sahyadrimetrus rugosus (Couzijn, 1981). Raised to species status.

Sahyadrimetrus tikaderi Prendini & Loria, 2020. New species from India.

Srilankametrus Couzijn, 1981. Raised to genus status.

Srilankametrus couzijni Prendini & Loria, 2020. New species from India.

Srilankametrus pococki Prendini & Loria, 2020. New species from Sri Lanka.

There are also several new combinations (species transferred from Heterometrus to one of the new genera) and synonymizations for many species in this article. I will refer to the abstract and appendix 4 (p. 479) in the article for a list of these as it will be too extensive  to list all of these here. Also check out the Scorpionidae family page to see the alle the new taxa and their content.

The article has several identification key for the relevant taxa in Scorpionidae.

Abstract:
[Due to lack of time I have omitted italics for species and genus names as this had to be done manually]
The genera and species of the Asian forest scorpions (Scorpionidae Latreille, 1802) are revised  based on a phylogenetic analysis of 186 morphological characters and 4188 base pairs of concatenated DNA sequence from three mitochondrial loci and two nuclear loci. Revision of the Asian  scorpionids required a critical reappraisal of the suprageneric classification of Scorpionidae, on  the basis of which the monotypic Indian scorpionoid genus, Rugodentus Bastawade et al., 2005, stat.  rev., and its type species, Rugodentus keralaensis Bastawade et al., 2005, stat. rev., are  revalidated, and subfamily Rugodentinae Bastawade et al., 2005, revalidated and elevated to the  rank of fam- ily, Rugodentidae Bastawade et al., 2005, stat. nov. et stat. rev.; Heterometrinae  Simon, 1879, stat. nov., and Opistophthalminae Rossi, 2016, stat. nov., are elevated to the rank of  subfamily; Pandi­ nopsis Vachon, 1974, stat. nov., and Pandipalpus Rossi, 2015, stat. nov., are  elevated to the rank of genus, resulting in two new combinations: Pandinopsis dictator (Pocock,  1888), comb. nov., and Pandipalpus viatoris (Pocock, 1890), comb. nov.; and 10 new synonyms are  presented: Pandinopsini Rossi, 2016 = Pandininae Thorell, 1876, syn. nov.; Protophthalmini Rossi,  2016 = Opistoph- thalminae Rossi, 2016, syn. nov.; Protophthalmus Lawrence, 1969 = Opistophthalmus  C.L. Koch, 1837, syn. nov.; Pandinoides (Dunlopandinoides) Rossi, 2016 = Pandinoides Fet, 2000,  syn. nov.; Pandinurus (Pandicaporiaccous) Rossi, 2015 = Pandiborellius Rossi, 2015, syn. nov.;  Buthus defensor C.L. Koch, 1837 = Pandinurus gregoryi (Pocock, 1896), syn. nov.; Buthus heros C.L. Koch, 1837 = Pandinurus exitialis (Pocock, 1888), syn. nov.; Pandinus lowei Kovařík, 2012 = Pandipalpus viatoris  (Pocock, 1890), syn. nov.; Pandinurus (Pandipalpus) pygmaeus Rossi, 2015 = Pandipalpus viatoris  (Pocock, 1890), syn. nov.; Pandinus intermedius Borelli, 1919 = Pandinurus citernii (Borelli,  1919), syn. nov. The following revisions are implemented to the classification of the Asian forest scorpions (Heterometrinae). Three former subgenera of Heterometrus Ehrenberg, 1828 are revalidated  and elevated to the rank of genus: Chersonesometrus Couzijn, 1978, stat. nov. et stat. rev.;  Javanimetrus Couzijn, 1981, stat. nov. et stat. rev.; and Srilankametrus Couzijn, 1981, stat. nov.  et stat. rev. One subgenus is elevated to the rank of genus: Gigantometrus Couzijn, 1978, stat.  nov. Two new genera and eight new species are described: Deccanometrus, gen. nov.; Sahyadrimetrus,  gen. nov.; Cher­ sonesometrus bastawadei, sp. nov.; Chersonesometrus hendersoni, sp. nov.;  Chersonesometrus natha­ norum, sp. nov.; Chersonesometrus shivashankari, sp. nov.; Sahyadrimetrus mathewi, gen. et sp. nov.; Sahyadrimetrus tikaderi, gen. et sp. nov.; Srilankametrus couzijni, sp.  nov.; Srilankametrus pococki, sp. nov. Heterometrus sensu stricto is restricted to eight species of  the nominotypical subgenus, all other species, formerly placed in Heterometrus, are transferred to  appropriate genera, five species are revalidated, and two subspecies elevated to the rank of  species, resulting in 28 new combinations: Chersonesometrus beccaloniae (Kovařík, 2004), comb.  nov.; Chersonesometrus fulvipes (C.L. Koch, 1837), comb. nov.; Chersonesometrus madraspatensis  (Pocock, 1900), comb. nov.; Chersonesometrus pelekomanus (Couzijn, 1981), comb. nov. et stat. rev.;  Chersonesometrus tristis (Henderson, 1919), comb. nov.; Chersonesometrus wroughtoni (Pocock, 1899),  comb. nov.; Deccanometrus bengalensis (C.L. Koch, 1841), comb. nov.; Deccanometrus latimanus  (Pocock, 1894), comb. nov.; Deccanometrus liurus (Pocock, 1897), comb. nov.; Deccanometrus obscurus  (Couzijn, 1981), comb. et stat. nov.; Dec­ canometrus phipsoni (Pocock, 1893), comb. nov.;  Deccanometrus ubicki (Kovařík, 2004), comb. nov.; Deccanometrus xanthopus (Pocock, 1897), comb.  nov.; Gigantometrus swammerdami (Simon, 1872), comb. nov.; Gigantometrus titanicus (Couzijn, 1981),  comb. nov. et stat. rev.; Heterometrus glaucus (Thorell, 1876), comb. nov. et stat. rev.;  Heterometrus laevigatus (Thorell, 1876), comb. nov. et stat. rev.; Heterometrus silenus (Simon,  1884), comb. nov. et stat. rev.; Javanimetrus cyaneus (C.L. Koch, 1836), comb. nov.; Sahyadrimetrus  barberi (Pocock, 1900), comb. nov.; Sahyadrimetrus kanarensis (Pocock, 1900), comb. nov.;  Sahyadrimetrus rugosus (Couzijn, 1981), comb. et stat. nov.; Sahyadrime­ trus scaber (Thorell,  1876), comb. nov.; Srilankametrus caesar (C.L. Koch, 1841), comb. nov. et stat. rev.;  Srilankametrus gravimanus (Pocock, 1894), comb. nov.; Srilankametrus indus (DeGeer, 1778), comb. nov.; Srilankametrus serratus (Pocock, 1900), comb. nov; Srilankametrus yaleensis (Kovařík et al., 2019), comb. nov. Twenty-seven new synonyms are presented: Scorpio leioderma Dufour, 856 = Sahyadrimetrus scaber (Thorell, 1876), syn. nov.; Palamnaeus costimanus var. β borneensis Thorell, 1876 = Heterometrus longimanus (Herbst, 1800), syn. nov.; Palamnaeus liophysa Thorell, 1888 = Heterometrus longimanus (Herbst, 1800), syn. nov.; Palamnaeus oatesii Pocock, 1900 = Heterometrus petersii (Thorell, 1876), syn. nov.; Palamnaeus swammerdami flavimanus Pocock, 1900 = Gigantometrus swammerdami (Simon, 1872), syn. nov.; Heterometrus liophysa var. madoerensis Kopstein, 1921 = Heterometrus glaucus (Thorell, 1876), syn. nov.; Heterometrus laevifrons Roewer, 1943 = Heterometrus glaucus (Thorell, 1876), syn. nov.; Heterometrus (Chersonesometrus) granulomanus Couzijn, 1981 = Srilankametrus caesar (C.L. Koch, 1841), syn. nov.; Heterometrus (Heterometrus) liophysa separatus Couzijn, 1981 = Heterometrus glaucus (Thorell, 1876), syn. nov.; Heterometrus (Heterometrus) liophysa spartanicus Couzijn, 1981 = Heterometrus glaucus (Thorell, 1876), syn. nov.; Heterometrus (Heterometrus) longimanus bengkalitensis Couzijn, 1981 = Heterometrus longimanus (Herbst, 1800), syn. nov.; Heterometrus (Heterometrus) longimanus marmoratus Couzijn, 1981 = Heterometrus longimanus (Herbst, 1800), syn. nov.; Heterometrus (Heterometrus) petersii mindanaensis Couzijn, 1981 = Heterometrus silenus (Simon, 1884), syn. nov.; Heterometrus (Heterometrus) spinifer solitarius Couzijn, 1981 = Heterometrus spinifer (Ehrenberg, 1828), syn. nov.; Heterometrus (Srilankametrus) indus laevitensus Couzijn, 1981 = Srilankametrus indus (DeGeer, 1778), syn. nov.; Heterometrus (Heterometrus) keralaensis Tikader and Bastawade, 1983 = Sahyadrimetrus rugosus (Couzijn, 1981), syn. nov.; Heterometrus cimrmani Kovařík, 2004 = Heterometrus laevigatus (Thorell, 1876), syn. nov.; Heterometrus mysorensis Kovařík, 2004 = Chersonesometrus tristis (Henderson, 1919), syn. nov.; Heterometrus nepalensis Kovařík, 2004 = Deccanometrus bengalensis (Pocock, 1900), syn. nov.; Heterometrus rolciki Kovařík, 2004 = Sahyadrimetrus scaber (Thorell, 1876), syn. nov.; Heterometrus sejnai Kovařík, 2004 = Javanimetrus cyaneus (C.L. Koch, 1836), syn. nov.; Heterometrus tibetanus Lourenço et al., 2005 = Deccanometrus bengalensis (Pocock, 1900), syn. nov.; Heterometrus liangi Zhu and Yang, 2007 = Heterometrus silenus (Simon, 1884), syn. nov.; Heterometrus telanganaensis Javed et al., 2010 = Deccanometrus xanthopus (Pocock, 1897), syn. nov.; Heterometrus atrascorpius Mirza et al., 2012 = Chersonesometrus beccaloniae (Kovařík, 2004), syn. nov.; Heterometrus minotaurus Plíšková et al., 2016 = Heterometrus laevigatus (Thorell, 1876), syn. nov.; Heterometrus bastawadei Rossi, 2016 = Rugodentus keralaensis Bastawade et al., 2005, syn. nov. Another 25 synonyms by previous authors are confirmed, for a total of 51 synonyms in subfamily Heterometrinae. Revised diagnoses with comparative images, and a key and distributional atlas of the genera and species are provided, along with a summary of available data for their ecology and conservation status, where applicable.

Reference:
Prendini L, Loria SF. Systematic revision of the Asian Forest Scorpions (Heterometrinae simon, 1879), revised suprageneric classification of Scorpionidae latreille, 1802, and revalidation of Rugodentidae Bastawade et al., 2005. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. 2020(442):1-480. [Open Access]

Thanks to Gerard Dupre for sending me this article.

Family Scorpionidae

Phylogenetic study gives Hadruridae family status ("Another one bites the dust")

There have been buzz about Carlos E. Santibáñez-López' and co-worker's new phylogenetic study of the family Caraboctonidae Kraepelin, 1905 for several months, but due to several reasons I have been slow to post this on the blog. But here it is and The Scorpion Files' family pages have also been updated.

I'm not going to go into details about the study here as I must admit that the more technical stuff is above my head, but I will list the main conclusions from the study:

1.
Hadrurinae Stahnke, 1973 is split from Caraboctonidae and elevated to family status, Hadruridae. Hadruridae consists of nine species in the two genera Hadrurus Thorell, 1876 and Hoffmannihadrurus Fet & Soleglad, 2004. Distributed in North America.

2.
Caraboctonidae now consists of 23 species in two two genera Caraboctonus Pocock, 1893 and Hadruroides Pocock, 1893. Distributed in South America.

3.
Two new superfamilies have been created: Caraboctonoidea Kraepelin, 1905 (Caraboctonidae and Superstitioniidae) and Hadruroidea Stahnke, 1974 (Hadruridae).

4.
The genera Uroctonus Thorell, 1876  (currently in Chactidae)  and Belisarius Simon, 1879 (currently in Belisaridae) are regarded as insertae sedis with respect to superfamilial placement.

More phylogenomic analyses will probably give us more insight in the complicated higher-level relationships in scorpions.

Abstract:
Historically, morphological characters have been used to support the monophyly, composition, and phylogenetic relationships of scorpion families. Although recent phylogenomic analyses have recovered most of these traditional higher level relationships as non-monophyletic, certain key taxa have yet to be sampled using a phylogenomic approach. Salient among these is the monotypic genus Caraboctonus Pocock, 1893, the type species of the family Caraboctonidae Kraepelin, 1905. Here, we examined the putative monophyly and phylogenetic placement of this family, sampling the library of C. keyserlingi Pocock, 1893 using high throughput transcriptomic sequencing. Our phylogenomic analyses recovered Caraboctonidae as polyphyletic due to the distant placement of the genera Caraboctonus and Hadrurus Thorell, 1876. Caraboctonus was stably recovered as the sister-group of the monotypic family Superstitioniidae Stahnke, 1940, whereas Hadrurus formed an unstable relationship with Uroctonus Thorell, 1876 and Belisarius Simon, 1879. Fourcluster likelihood mapping revealed that the instability inherent to the placement of Hadrurus, Uroctonus and Belisarius was attributable to significant gene tree conflict in the internodes corresponding to their divergences. To redress the polyphyly of Caraboctonidae, the following systematic actions have been taken: (1) the family Caraboctonidae has been delimited to consist of 23 species in the genera Caraboctonus and Hadruroides Pocock, 1893; (2) Caraboctonidae, previously included in the superfamily Iuroidea Thorell, 1876 or as incertae sedis, is transferred to the superfamily Caraboctonoidea (new rank); (3) the superfamily Hadruroidea (new rank) is established and the status of Hadrurinae Stahnke, 1973 is elevated to family (Hadruridae new status) including 9 species in the genera Hadrurus and Hoffmannihadrurus Fet & Soleglad, 2004 and (4) we treat Uroctonus and Belisarius as insertae sedis with respect to superfamilial placement. Our systematic actions engender the monophyly of both Iuroidea and Caraboctonidae. Future phylogenomic investigations should target similar taxon-poor and understudied

References:
Santibáñez-López CE, Ojanguren-Affilastro AA, Sharma PP. Another one bites the dust: Taxonomic sampling of a key genus in phylogenomic datasets reveals more non-monophyletic groups in traditional scorpion classification. Invertebrate Systematics. 2020;34(2):133-43. [Subscription required for full text]

Thanks to Carlos E. Santibáñez-López and Prashant P. Sharma who have kept me informed about their study. I have also been informed about this article by Kari McWest and Matt Simon. Big thanks to them!

Family Caraboctonidae
Family Hadruridae

A new family, genus and species of scorpion from Myanmar amber

Andrea Rossi has recently investigated a new scorpion found in amber (burmite) from Myanmar. A new fossil family, genus and species are described.

Sucinlourencous adrianae Rossi, 2015 (Sucinlourencoidae)

Abstract:
A remarkable new family, genus and species of scorpion are described from the cretaceous burmese amber (burmite) from Myanmar. The new family Sucinlourencoidae fam. n. shows particular features that are unique among the extinct burmese families and the existing families of scorpions.

Reference:
Rossi A. A new family, genus and species of scorpion from the burmite of Myanmar (Scorpiones: Sucinlourencoidae). Arachnida - Rivista Aracnologica Italiana. 2915;1(1):3-21.

Thanks to Dr. Rossi for sending me his paper!

A new fossil family/genus/species described from Amber from Myanmar (Burma)

Wilson Lourenco has recently described a new fossil family, genus and species from Cretaceous amber from Myanmar (Burma).

Family Palaeotrilineatidae Lourenco, 2012
Genus Palaeotrilineatus Lourenco, 2012
Species Palaeotrilineatus ellenbergeri Lourenco, 2012

Abstract:
A fossil scorpion belonging to a new family, Palaeotrilineatidae fam. n., and to a new genus and species, Palaeotrilineatus ellenbergeri sp. n., is described from Cretaceous amber of Myanmar (Burma). This is the fourth species and the fifth scorpion specimen to be described from Burmese amber. In the light of the previously described families, Electrochaerilinae and Chaerilobuthidae, the description of the new family Palaeotrilineatidae brings further evidence to the phylogenetic position of Burmese Cretaceous amber scorpions, lying at the base of the extant families Buthidae, Chaerilidae and Pseudochactidae.

Reference:
Lourenco WR. About the scorpion fossils from the Cretaceous amber of Myanmar (Burma) with the descriptions of a new family, genus and species. Acta Biologica Paranaense, Curitiba. 2012;41(3-4):75-87.

Thanks to professor Lourenco for sending me his paper!

New genus and species from Cuba

Cryptoiclus rodriguezi Teruel & Kovarik, 2012 female from Cuba. Photo: Rolando Teruel (C)

I just got my hands on Kovarik and Teruel's wonderful book "Scorpions of Cuba", previously mentioned in this blog. This is a very informative book covering all known scorpions described from Cuba (with color pictures of all species and many habitat pictures too), but a new genus and couple of new species was also discovered by the authors while researching for the book:

Scorpionidae:

Cryptoiclus Teruel &Kovarik, 2012 - A new genus endemic for eastern Cuba.
Cryptoiclus rodriguezi Teruel & Kovarik, 2012 - Only known species in the genus.

Cryptoiclus seems to be a very rare taxa. Only four specimens have been collected during 25 years of intensive searching.

Buthidae:

Microtityus pusillus Teruel & Kovarik, 2012 (new species)
Microtityus flaviscens Teruel, 2001 (new status - previously M. fundorai flaviscens Teruel, 2001)

You will find updated identification keys to all scorpion taxa known so far from Cuba.

The "Scorpions of Cuba" book is a must for all scorpion researchers and enthusiasts interested in the scorpion fauna of Cuba, Caribbean and Central America!

Reference:
Teruel R, Kovarik F. Scorpions of Cuba. Jakub Rolcik - Clarion Production; 2012. ISBN 978-80-904340-1-1.

Thanks to Rolando Teruel for sharing a picture of the new species Cryptoiclus rodriguezi!

Family Scorpionidae
Family Buthidae

A new scorpion fossil from cretaceous amber found in Myanmar (Burma)

Wilson Lourenco and Alex Beigel have published a new family, genus and species of fossil scorpions based on a specimen found in cretaceous amber from Burma.

Chaerilobuthidae Lourenco & Beigel, 2011
Chaerilobuthus Lourenco & Beigel, 2011
Chaerilobuthus complexus Lourenco & Beigel, 2011

Abstract:
A fossil scorpion belonging to a new family, genus and species, Chaerilobuthus complexus gen. n., sp. n., is described from Cretaceous amber of Myanmar (Burma). This is the third species and the fourth scorpion specimen to have been found and described from Burmese amber. The new family seems quite distinct from the family Archaeobuthidae Lourenco, 2001 described from Cretaceous amber of Lebanon.

Reference:
Lourenço WR, Beigel A. A new scorpion fossil from the Cretaceous amber of Myanmar (Burma). New phylogenetic implications. Comptes Rendus Palevol. 2011;10(8):635-9. [subscription required for fulltext]

Thanks to Professor Lourenco for sending me this paper!

Major revision of troglomorphic North American scorpions results in a new family and genus

The fantastic troglomorphic and trglobitic scorpions of Mexico have been placed in different families since their discovery. The study of these enigmatic scorpions has been difficult because of their cryptic ecology (some species living deep in narrow caves) and low population numbers. Only 29 specimens have been collected in the last 40 years. The species has until recently been placed in the family Superstitioniidae.

In a recent revision of all known specimens, Valerio Vignoli & Lorenzo Prendini (2009) have redescribed all species and conducted a cladistic analysis. This has resulted in the elevation of the old family Typhlochactidae Mitchell, 1971. In addition, the new genus Stygochactas Vignoli & Prendini, 2009 has been created to accomodate the species S. granulosus (Sissom & Cokendolpher, 1998), previously placed in Typhlochactas Mitchell, 1971.

The following taxa have been transfered from Superstitioniidae to Typhlochactidae:

Alacran tartarus Francke, 1982
Alacran chamuco Francke, 2009 (not in this paper, but published a few weeks ago)
Sotanochactas elliotti (Mitchell, 1971)
Stygochactas granulosus (Sissom & Cokendolpher, 1998)
Typhlochactas cavicola Francke, 1986
Typhlochactas mitchelli Sissom, 1988
Typhlochactas reddelli Mitchell, 1968
Typhlochactas rhodesi Mitchell, 1968
Typhlochactas sissomi Francke et al., 2009
Typhlochactas sylvestris Mitchell & Peck, 1977

Abstract:
The scorpion family Typhlochactidae Mitchell, 1971, endemic to eastern Mexico, comprises nine troglomorphic species specialized for life in hypogean and endogean habitats. Due to their cryptic ecology, inaccessible habitat, and apparently low population density, Typhlochactidae are poorly known. Only 29 specimens have been collected in 40 years. Four species are known from a single specimen, two species are known only from the male and three only from the female. We provide an illustrated revision of the family based on a reexamination of most specimens in the world’s collections, including new specimens collected after the original descriptions and older specimens not previously described. Based on results of a recent cladistic analysis, Typhlochactidae are elevated, for the first time, from their former rank as subfamily, first of Chactidae and, more recently, of Superstitioniidae. Alacraninae, new subfamily is created to accommodate Alacran Francke, 1982. Stygochactas, new genus, is created to accommodate Typhlochactas granulosus Sissom and Cokendolpher, 1998 in a new combination. Sotanochactas Francke, 1986, Stygochactas and Typhlochactas Mitchell, 1971 are retained in subfamily Typhlochactinae Mitchell, 1971. Diagnoses of the family and subfamilies are presented, followed by a key to the genera and species, revised diagnoses of the genera, revised diagnoses and descriptions, tabulated meristic data, and distribution maps of the species. Descriptions and diagnoses are illustrated with ultraviolet fluorescence and visible light photographs, providing a visual atlas to the morphology of these remarkable scorpions. A review of their taxonomic history is provided, the importance of trichobothriotaxy for their systematics discussed, and several misconceptions in the literature clarified.

Reference:
Vignoli V, Prendini L. Systematic revision of the troglomorphic North American scorpion family Typhlochactidae (Scorpiones, Chactoidea). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. 2009; (326):1-94. [Free fulltext]

Family Typhlochactidae