Scutigera coleoptrata (Linnaeus, 1758)

Dyachkov, Yurii V., 2024, An annotated checklist of the Chilopoda from Azerbaijan, Ecologica Montenegrina 71, pp. 301-316 : 313-316

40. Scutigera coleoptrata (Linnaeus, 1758)

Scutigera coleoptrata araneoides – Muralewicz 1929: 7.

Scutigera coleoptrata – Bababekova 1996: 91; Korobushkin et al. 2016: 5; Zuev 2016: 23; Dyachkov et al. 2022b: 76.

Previous records. “Caucasus Major” ( Bababekova 1996); Baku: [13] ( Muralewicz 1929).

Distribution. A Turano-Mediterranean species, introduced worldwide ( Stoev & Geoffroy 2004; Simaiakis et al. 2013; Dyachkov et al. 2022b).

Other records of uncertain species

Bababekova (1996: 91) did not identify some specimens at the species level (listed below). There is no data on the morphology of these specimens.

Clinopodes sp. – “Caucasus Minor”, “Caucasus Major”; Lenkaran district: [24].

Schizotaenia sp. – Lenkaran district: [24].

Himantariidae gen. sp. – Lenkaran district: [24].

Monotarsobius sp. – “Caucasus Minor”.

Cryptops – “Caucasus Minor”; Lenkaran district: [24].

Conclusions

This checklist of Chilopoda from Azerbaijan contains 40 species (14 genera, 7 families, and 4 orders). Nine species are endemic to the Caucasus: Lithobius asper laeviceps , L. caucasicus , L. cronebergii , L. foviceps , L. lenkoranicus , L. portchinskii , L. sectilis , Pleurogeophilus caucasicus , and Scolopendra media ; two of them, Lithobius foviceps and Scolopendra media , are known from Azerbaijan only. One species is known from a cave: Lithobius asper laeviceps .

Bonato et al. (2016) indicated the presence of Arebius kochii (Stuxberg, 1875) , Lithobius punctulatus C.L. Koch, 1847 , L. memorabilis Attems, 1951 , Escaryus koreanus Takakuwa, 1937 , Pachymerium atticum Verhoeff, 1901 , and Scolopendra subspinipes piceoflava Attems, 1934 in Azerbaijan. But there is no data on occurrence of these species in Azerbaijan.

Female specimens of Hessebius megapus are still unknown, this species is preliminarily assigned to the Hessebius . The taxonomic status of two species requires revision: Pleurogeophilus caucasicus and Scolopendra media . Some faunistic records require confirmation: Stenotaenia linearis and Cormocephalus gervaisianus . There is no data on the morphology of five forms: Clinopodes sp. , Schizotaenia sp. , Himantariidae gen. sp. ( Geophilomorpha ), Lithobius sp. ( Lithobiomorpha ), and Cryptops sp. ( Scolopendromorpha ). It is possible that these forms belong to some species already known from Azerbaijan or belong to other species. Consequently, the number of species and genera can increase.

The distribution of Lithobius curtipes in the Caucasus remains unclear. According to Zalesskaja (1978), all specimens identified as L. curtipes from the Caucasus by Muralewicz (1929) belong to L. pusillus Sseliwanoff, 1878 , which is a junior synonym of L. sseliwanoffi .

Additional research of Chilopoda from Azerbaijan is still necessary. The taxonomic status of some species is still unclear, there is no data on the morphology of several forms, and some faunistic records require confirmation. Moreover, as shown in Fig. 1 , a large part of the territory is still unexplored.

Acknowledgments

I am grateful to reviewers for critical commenting of the manuscript.

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Figures

Figure 1. Distribution map of the centipede species records in Azerbaijan, based on literature data. For codes see Table 1.