Pantobuthus complicatus, Lourenco & Duhem, 2009

Lourenco, Wilson & Duhem, Bernard, 2009, Saharo-Sindian buthid scorpions; description of two new genera and species from Occidental Sahara and Afghanistan, ZooKeys 14, pp. 37-54 : 45-48

Pantobuthus complicatus sp. n.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:51EA8F5B-6C4D-41AC-9870-3A4F20E58532 Figs 5 , 18-28,31 Diagnosis: as for the new genus.

Type material: Afghanistan, North range, East of Vic Shiberghan, Dasht-e-Leili, sandy/loess steppe (rather than desert), 480 m, XI/1971 (C. Naumann), 1 female holotype. Deposited in the collection of the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, Paris .

Etymology: The specific name (from Latin complicare) means ‘consisting of parts intricately combined’ in reference to the puzzling characteristics of the new species.

Description based on female holotype (Measurements in Table 1 ).

Coloration. Basically yellowish with some light grey zones. Prosoma: carapace yellowish, paler anteriorly; carinae slightly reddish; eyes marked by dark to blackish pigment. Mesosoma: yellowish with tergites marked with greyish confluent zones; only the median carinae are dark. Metasoma: segments I to V yellowish with reddish carinae; vesicle yellowish with vestigial reddish zones laterally; aculeus yellowish at the base and dark reddish at its extremity. Venter yellowish; pectines pale yellow. Chelicerae yellowish without any variegated spots; fingers yellowish with reddish teeth. Pedipalps: yellowish with carinae reddish; chela fingers with the oblique rows of granules reddish. Legs pale yellow.

Morphology. Carapace moderately granular; anterior margin with a very weak median concavity, almost straight. Carinae moderately marked; anterior median strongly granular, central median and posterior median carinae moderately granular, with a moderately to weakly marked ‘lyre’ configuration. All furrows moderate. Median ocular tubercle at the centre of carapace. Eyes separated by more than two ocular diameters. Three pairs of lateral eyes situated in a posterior position in relation to the anterior edge; the first two of moderate size, the last vestigial. Sternum triangular and short; wider than long. Mesosoma: tergites moderately granular. Th ree longitudinal carinae weakly crenulate in tergites I to VI; lateral carinae reduced in tergites I to III. Tergite VII pentacarinate. Venter: genital operculum divided longitudinally in two semi-oval plates. Pectines: pectinal tooth count 24-23; middle basal lamella of the pectines not dilated. Sternites without granules, smooth with elongated spiracles; four carinae on

sternite VII; other sternites acarinated and with two vestigial furrows. Metasoma: segments I to III with 10 crenulated carinae; segment IV with 8 crenulated carinae; ventral carinae strongly marked on segments II to IV with lobate denticles; the first four segments with a smooth dorsal depression; segment V with five carinae; the latero-

ventral carinae crenulate with 2-3 lobate denticles posteriorly; the most posterior very large; ventral median carina slightly divided posteriorly; anal arc composed of 7-8 ventral teeth, and two lateral lobes. Intercarinal spaces moderately granular. Telson with a strongly globular vesicle and some granulations on the lateral and ventral surfaces; aculeus curved and much shorter than the vesicle, without a subaculear tooth. Cheliceral dentition as defined by Vachon (1963) for the family Buthidae ; external distal and internal distal teeth approximately the same length; basal teeth on movable finger small but not fused; ventral aspect of both fingers and manus covered with long dense setae. Pedipalps: femur pentacarinate; patella with 7-8 carinae; chela with only vestigial carinae; all faces weakly granular. Fixed and movable fingers with 9-10 oblique rows of granules. Internal and external accessory granules present, strong; three accessory granules on the distal end of the movable finger next to the terminal denticle. Legs: tarsi with two series of short spine-like setae; internal series with 5-7 setae, external reduced to 1-3 setae or totally absent; tibial spur strong on legs III and IV; pedal spurs moderate to strong on legs I to IV. Trichobothriotaxy: trichobothrial pattern of Type A, orthobothriotaxic as defined by Vachon (1974). Dorsal trichobothria of femur arranged in β (beta) configuration ( Vachon, 1975). Trichobothrium db of chela totally displaced over the internal face of fixed finger.

Figures

Figures 1-8. Carapace and tergites I-II. 1. Saharobuthus elegans sp. n., male holotype. 2. Compsobuthus acutecarinatus, female holotype. 3. Leiurus quinquestriatus, male. 4. Mesobuthus eupeus persicus, female. 5. Pantobuthus complicatus sp. n., female holotype. 6. Odontobuthus doriae, female. 7. Buthus draa, female. 8. Hottentotta schach, male (scales = 5 mm).

Figures 18-28. Pantobuthus complicatus sp. n., female holotype. 18. Chelicerae, dorsal aspect. 19. Sternum, genital operculum and pectines. 20. Cutting edge of movable finger with rows of granules. 21. Leg IV, showing tibial and pedal spurs. 22. Idem, detail of tarsi. 23-25. Chela, dorso-external and ventral aspects and fixed finger in detail. 26-27. Patella, dorsal and external aspects. 28. Femur, dorsal aspect (scales = 3 mm).

Figures 29-32. 29. Pedipalp, dorsal aspect, Vachoniolus globimanus, male holotype (scale = 5 mm). 30- 32. Metasoma and telson, lateral aspect. 30. Saharobuthus elegans sp. n., male holotype. 31. Pantobuthus complicatus sp. n., female holotype. 32. Odontobuthus doriae, female (scales 30-32 = 10 mm).