Neobuthus eritreaensis, Lowe & Kovařík, 2016

Lowe, Graeme & Kovařík, František, 2016, Scorpions of the Horn of Africa (Arachnida, Scorpiones). Part V. Two new species of Neobuthus Hirst, 1911 (Buthidae), from Ethiopia and Eritrea, Euscorpius 224, pp. 1-46 : 14-26

Neobuthus eritreaensis sp. n.

( Figs. 43–95, 97, 151–153, 159, 161, Tables 2, 4–5)

http://www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:F7

213F2C-0DFD-48EB-AC5D-F9CDEDA05525

TYPE LOCALITY AND TYPE REPOSITORY. Eritrea, near Massawa , 15°36'58.7" N 39°22'32.8" E, 74 m a.s.l. (Locality No. 15EI, Fig. 97), FKCP .

TYPE MATERIAL. Eritrea, near Massawa , 15°36'58.7" N 39°22'32.8" E, 74 m a.s.l. (Locality No. 15EI, Fig. 97), 1♂ (holotype) 4♀1♀ im. (paratypes), FKCP , 1♂ 1♀ (paratypes), GL, 4.XI.2015, leg. F. Kovařík ( UV detection); near Massawa , 15°36'55" 39°24'22"E, 30 m a.s.l., (Locality No. 15 EK), 2♂ 1♀ im. (paratypes), FKCP, 8.XI.2015, leg. F. Kovařík.

ETYMOLOGY. Named after the country of collection, as this is the first record of the genus in Eritrea.

DIAGNOSIS. Total length 18 mm (male), 26.5 mm (female); carapace with area between anterior median carinae partially fuscous; tergites with 3 dark stripes, median stripe flanked on either side by broad longitudinal yellow bands that may be broken by fuscosity extending across anterior tergites; pedipalp relatively slender, males with femur L/ W 2.44 –2.53, patella L/ W 2.47 –2.55, chela L/ W 4.79 –5.06; chela movable finger with 6 subrows of primary denticles, 3–4 external accessory denticles flanking proximal end of each subrow; posterior margins of carapace and tergites usually lacking macrosetae, or sparsely setose with 1–2 macrosetae; pedipalps, legs, metasoma and telson with very short, stout macrosetae in males, long, fine setae in females; males with coxae and sternites III–VI densely, finely granular, sternite VII densely, finely granular without carinae or 2 vestigial median carinae; females with sternites III–VI smooth, sternite VII finely granular with 4 granulated carinae; metasoma I–III with median lateral carinae present in female, absent in male; lateral surface of metasoma V in males densely granulated, with granules separated; tarsi with relatively sparse setation, leg III of adults with 7–10 macrosetae in retroinferior series of basitarsus, 13–20 ventral macrosetae on telotarsus; pectine teeth: 15–19 (males), 12–15 (females).

DESCRIPTION (HOLOTYPE MALE) .

Coloration ( Figs. 43–44, 47–49, 53–54, 59, 61–67, 84– 90, 94). Base color light greenish yellow with extensive patterns of dark maculation. Carapace fuscosity distributed over interocular triangle including most of area between anterior median carinae (but lighter dirty yellowish in narrow midline zone); fuscous areas continuous on lateral flanks and post-ocular tubercle, reticulate in posterior lateral areas; posterior median area dark on median strip and transverse lines; ocular tubercle black, surrounded by elongate yellow patches on laterally; posterior margin of carapace dark on lateral and median borders. Tergites 3-striped, with fuscosity arranged longitudinally in narrow median and broad lateral bands; pale patches on either side of median stripe narrow, forming longitudinal ochraceous-yellow bands; on each tergite, lateral bands with more dense fuscosity on posterior part, broken by reticular or fenestrated patterning on anterior part, faint on pretergite. Sternites and coxosternal area pale yellow. Metasomal segments I–IV with fuscous median dorsal markings, darker and solid on segment I, lighter and more diffuse on II–IV, forming anteriorly-directed trident pattern on II–III, divergent trilineate pattern on IV; lateral areas of dorsal surfaces of I–IV between dorsosubmedian carinae yellow; dorsolateral surfaces with reticulated pigmentation, dorsolateral carinae I–IV marked by darker broad stripe; lateral and ventral surfaces of I–III pale yellow with thin dark stripes on ventrolateral and ventrosubmedian carinae, stripes very faint on I, increasingly darker on II–III; lateral and ventral surfaces of IV dirty yellow or yellow, ventrolateral carinae marked by thin line, areas of ventrosubmedian carinae by broad dark bands; segment V with alternating strips of reticulated and solid fuscosity on anterior 4/5, yellow on posterior 1/5, anterior median zone of dorsal surface with long brownish-yellow patch. Telson vesicle yellow, aculeus brownish-yellow on basal half, dark reddish-black on distal half. Chelicera with dark transverse band on subdistal area of dorsal manus, yellow on internal and external margins; posterior edge of dark band transitioning to faded reticulation, with remaining basal areas of dorsal manus uniformly pale yellow. Pedipalps mostly pale yellow with dark markings on some carinae of femur, patella and chela; fuscous stripes heavier on distal dorsal and lower internal surfaces of femur, and external and internal surfaces of patella; patella uniformly yellow on dorsal surface between dorsoexternal and dorsointernal carinae, sparsely reticular on dorsointernal surface; ventral surface of femur and patella pale yellow; pedipalp chela manus with weak fuscosity on distal dorsal manus, and along positions of dorsointernal and interomedian carinae; pedipalp fingers yellow. Legs with fuscous longitudinal stripes along distal half of dorsal, distal retrosuperior, and proinferior surfaces of femur, and retrosuperior surface of patella.

Carapace ( Figs. 43, 47, 49, 53, 94). Strongly trapezoidal, anterior width 0.36 times posterior width, wider than long (L/ W 0.83); posterior median postocular area flat, anterior median preocular area gently slope downwards towards anterior margin; lateral flanks steeply sloped; ocular tubercle broad, prominent, located slightly anterior to middle of carapace (preocular distance 0.45 times carapace length); median eyes large, separated by 1.25 times their diameter (viewed in dorsal projection); anterior margin straight, finely microdenticulate, with coarser granules overlapping edge, bearing 8 macrosetae; lateral margins finely denticulate; anterior median carinae weak, coarsely granular, with pair of macrosetae in front of ocular tubercle; other carinae indistinct; dense granulation covering most of carapace, interrupted only by short longitudinal smooth patches lateral to ocular tubercle, and restricted transverse smooth patches behind ocular tubercle and in locations of posterior transverse, posterior marginal, and posterior lateral furrows; posterior margin of carapace almost smooth, with only very fine micro-crenulations; carapace lacking other macrosetae except for one on right superciliary carina, and one on posterior median margin.

Chelicera. Manus smooth on dorsal side, with coarse granules in transverse subapical row extending from dorsointernal carina, and small granule clusters at base of movable finger; dorsointernal carina strong, almost smooth; chaetotaxy: 4 straight macrosetae on anterior dorsal surface, including 1 large dark seta on dorsointernal carina, 1 pale seta on subapical granule row, 2 pale setae on apical margin; 2 dorsal microsetae on distal half of movable finger; brush of longer curved setae on internodorsal surface at base of fixed finger; fingers with typical buthid dentition (Vachon, 1963); fixed finger with large distal denticle, 1 subdistal denticle and 2 basal denticles fused into bicusp, single denticle on ventral surface at level of bicusp; dorsal margin of movable finger with 5 denticles: 1 large distal denticle, mediumsized subdistal and medial, and 2 small, partially fused basal denticles; ventral margin with 2 denticles: 1 large distal, 1 small subdistal; dense fields of fine setae on ventrointernal surfaces of movable finger and anterior manus.

Coxosternal area ( Figs. 44, 48, 54). Coxae weakly, finely granulated, coxa I–II endites with weaker, sparser granulation, almost smooth; coxae I–III with mixture of short, straight macrosetae and longer curved dark reddish macrosetae: 4–8 on coxa I, 9–12 on II, 4–5 on III; coxa IV with single macroseta near anterior end, close to sternum, otherwise devoid of setae; sternum subtriangular, smooth, with deep posteromedian invagination, posterior transverse sulcus and 2 short reddish macrosetae; genital opercula smooth, cordate, with 4–5 short reddish macrosetae; genital papillae present.

Pectines ( Figs. 44, 48, 54). Basal piece smooth, with deep V-shaped anterior median invagination, 4 short reddish macrosetae; pectines long, distal tips extending to proximal 0.4 of length of trochanter IV; combs with 3 marginal lamellae, 6–8 middle lamellae, 20–20 teeth; posterobasal vertex of basal middle lamella slightly extended, angulate; marginal lamellae, middle lamellae and fulcra with dense cover of short dark reddish macrosetae; fulcra with 2–4 setae; when anterior margins of left and right pectines are aligned with posterior edges of coxae IV, first and second teeth at base of combs overlap completely.

Hemispermatophore ( Figs. 91–93). Elongate, slender, trunk 6.7 times length of capsule region; flagellum well separated from external lobe, pars recta short with internal lamina, pars reflecta narrower, cylindriform, slightly longer than pars recta; capsule region with 4 lobes at base of flagellum; external lobe longest, apically rounded; median lobe carinate, apically rounded; internal lobe apically truncate, same length as median lobe; basal lobe strongly developed, forming a pointed hook.

Mesosoma ( Figs. 43–44, 47–49, 94). Moderately elongate, ca. 2 times length of carapace. Tergites: pretergites smooth with finely micro-crenulate posterior margins; tergites I–VI a weak granular median carina only developed in posterior half; tergites III–VI with weakly indicated granular lateral carinae near posterior margins; tergites I–VI densely granular, with coarser granules on posterior lateral areas; tergite VII densely granular, with slight median hump, paired inner and lateral carinae weakly indicated, granular, outer laterals obsolete; posterior margins with very fine, microdenticulations in tergites I–VI, smooth in tergite VII; all tergites devoid of macrosetae. Sternites: presternites IV–VII smooth, posterior margins very weakly micro-crenulate; sternites III–VI densely covered with weak, fine granulation, with transverse slit-like spiracles; areas of III covered by pectines very finely micro-shagreened; sternite V with posterior marginal smooth patch free of granulation; sternite VII densely, finely granulated; median carinae weak or vestigial, granular, confined to posterior 2/3, lateral carinae obsolete; lateral margins of all sternites finely denticulate; sternite macrosetae (non-marginal/ marginal): III 8/8, IV 5/11, V 6/12, VI 5/14, VII 8/6; setae on sternite VII similar to setae on III–VI.

Metasoma ( Figs. 43–44, 84–86, 94). Moderately elongate, total length of segments I–V 1.5 times length of prosoma + mesosoma; segment I as wide as long, segments II–V progressively longer than wide (L/W ratio increasing from 1.2 to 2.0); carination: segments I–II with 10 carinae, III with 8 carinae, IV–V with 2 carinae; segments I–III with moderate, granulate ventrosubmedian and ventrolateral carinae, weak to vestigial, granulate dorsosubmedian carinae, obsolete dorsolateral carinae; lateral median carinae weak, granulate on I, very weakly indicated by granule series on II, obsolete on III; segment IV with weakly indicated, granulate ventrolateral carinae; segment V with strong, granulate to dentate-lobate ventrolateral carinae; granulation: segments I–III with dense granulation on all intercarinal surfaces; segment IV densely granulated except for bilateral posterior smooth patches on dorsal surface; segment V densely granular on lateral and ventral surfaces, more coarsely so on ventral surface, granules not arranged into any traces of carinae; lateral anal lobe with strong notch towards ventral end, ventral anal arc with ca. 10 weak crenulations; chaetotaxy: segments I–IV with scattered macrosetae on carinae and intercarinal surfaces; lateral surface of segment V with macrosetae arrayed in 2 longitudinal rows of 6–9 setae near dorsal and ventral margins, ventral surface with sparsely scattered setae; dorsal surfaces of all segments bare; all metasomal setae short to very short, straight, reddish, shorter and more stout than coxosternal and sternal setae.

Telson ( Figs. 43–44, 84–86, 94). Vesicle slightly elongated, posterior surface steeply sloped, not quite truncate; aculeus stout, shorter than vesicle, tip of aculeus directed almost vertically; ventral surface sparsely, weakly granular, with scattered anteriorly-directed, stout, reddish macrosetae.

Pedipalps ( Figs. 43–44, 57, 59, 61–67, 94). Femur: moderately elongated, 2.53 times longer than wide; dorsoexternal and external carinae weak, granulated; other carinae obsolete; dorsal, external and internal surfaces with sparse fine granules, ventral surface sparsely shagreened, almost smooth; 4–5 distal external accessory macrosetae. Patella: moderately elongated, 2.55 times longer than wide; external, dorsoexternal, dorsomedian, dorsointernal, internal carinae weak, with coarse granules; ventrointernal carina vestigial, marked by series of medium to fine granules; ventral and ventroexternal carinae obsolete; dorsoexternal, dorsal and upper internal surfaces with sparse, coarse granules, some areas smooth; ventrointernal, ventral and ventroexternal surfaces smooth or almost smooth with few fine granules; short, straight reddish macrosetae scattered sparsely over carinae. Chela: Short, relatively stout, 5.06 times longer than wide; fingers robust, movable finger 1.78 times manus ventral length; manus and fingers smooth, carinae obsolete; manus, fixed and movable fingers with sparse short, straight, reddish macrosetae; numerous fine, translucent microsetae on fingers; fixed finger with 4 subdistal denticles proximal to distal tooth, 6 primary denticle subrows, 3–4 external and 6 internal accessory denticles; movable finger with 4 subdistal denticles proximal to distal tooth, 5 primary denticle subrows, 3 external and 5 internal accessory denticles; right chela malformed, with conspicuous, broadly rimmed, crater-like depression between fixed finger trichobothria eb and esb.

Trichobothriotaxy. Neobothriotaxic minorante, type Aβ (Vachon, 1974); femur d 2 vestigial, indistinguishable from chemotactic microsetae, patella d 2 slightly larger; other buthid petite trichobothria, chela Eb 3, Esb and esb present; patella with esb 1 slightly proximal to esb 2 on left segment, slight distal to it on right segment.

Legs ( Figs. 87–90). Relatively elongated; femora with finely granulate or denticulate carinae, surfaces finely granulated prolaterally, faintly granulated or smooth retrolaterally; patellae with weakly granulated carinae, faintly granular prolaterally, smooth retrolaterally; tibiae and tarsomeres smooth; legs III–IV with small tibial spurs; retrolateral pedal spurs simple, non-setose; prolateral pedal spurs simple, non-setose on I–II, basally bifurcate, bearing single macroseta on III–IV; chaetotaxy: coxa, femora, patella and tibia of all legs bearing variable numbers of short to medium length, straight, dark-reddish macrosetae; tarsi with mix of short and longer, dark-reddish macrosetae; basitarsi I–III slightly compressed with flat retrolateral surfaces, with bristle combs consisting of retrosuperior series of longer macrosetae, plus retroinferior and proinferior series of shorter macrosetae; bristle comb setal counts (retrosuperior/ retroinferior): I 4/6, II 4–5/8, III 6/8–9; telotarsi with two rows of short setae on ventral aspect, 16– 18 setae on telotarsus III.

Paratype female ( Figs. 45–46, 50–52, 55–56, 58, 60, 68–83, 95, 151–153, 159). Color pattern very similar to that of male, but fuscous patterns weaker on metasoma, and on dorsolateral surfaces of metasomal segments I– III. Other differences from male include: larger size (total length of adult male 18.0 mm, adult female 26.5 mm); carapace with less dense granulation, coarser wellseparated granules on interocular triangle; tergites with sparser granulation, anterior areas finely shagreened medially, smooth laterally; tergite VII with weaker, finer granulation; weak, granulated median carinae present on metasomal segments I–III; metasomal segments I–III sparser granulation on intercarinal surfaces, dorsal surface of I–II very sparsely granular, of III–V smooth; all metasomal carinae more strongly developed; segments II–III with stronger dentate granulation on ventrosubmedian carinae, posterior denticles larger than anterior denticles; segment V with larger lobate granules on posterior ventrolateral carinae, lateral surface weakly, sparsely granular; telson more bulbous, with stronger granulation, sternites III–V completely smooth, IV smooth medially, sparsely granulated laterally; sternite VII with nearly uniform, fine granulation, somewhat more sparse than in male, 2 pairs of carinae well marked by enlarged granules; genital opercula more elongated, with 4–5 setae, posterior ends overlapping pectine basal piece; pectine basal piece with shallower, broader Ushaped anterior invagination; pectines with smaller teeth, shorter, distal tips extending to distal limit of coxa IV, 6–7 middle lamellae, basal middle lamella somewhat narrower along axial dimension; pedipalp chela more stout (compare L/ W ratios in Tab.4); pedipalp femur with much weaker, sparser granulation, almost smooth; pedipalp patella and chela smooth; femora and patellae of legs smooth on prolateral surfaces; macrosetae on pedipalps, legs, metasoma and telson much longer and finer than in the male.

Measurements. See Tab. 2.

VARIATION. For variation in selected morphometric ratios and meristics, see Tabs. 4–5. Coloration patterns were fairly consistent across the examined material, although fuscous markings could be lighter or darker in some individuals.

COMPARISONS. N. eritreaensis sp. n. is similar to N. cloudsleythompsoni , sharing a 3-striped pattern on the tergites, very short macrosetae on male pedipalps and metasoma, and granulated male sternites. It differs from N. cloudsleythompsoni as follows: fuscosity infiltrating area between anterior median carinae of carapace (vs. clear), female sternite VII granulated with four granulated carinae (vs. smooth with carinae obsolete), higher mean pectinal tooth count ( Tab. 5), more stout metasomal segments ( Tab. 4), ventral surface of telson strongly granulated (vs. weakly granulated or smooth).

COMMENTS ON LOCALITIES AND LIFE STRATEGY. The second author visited the locality 15EI ( Fig. 97) on 4 November 2015 and collected with UV light. Males of Neobuthus eritreaensis sp. n. were active immediately after sunset but females appeared later. At the locality, the second author recorded after sunset air temperature 31.5°C. In addition to N. eritreaensis sp. n. he recorded at this locality Compsobuthus sp. On 8 November 2015, the second author stopped on the second locality 15EK very near to 15EI and found

Neobuthus

eritreaensis

sp

.

n

.

Measurement

(

mm

)

Holotype

♂

Paratype

♀

Total L 18.00 26.50

Metasoma + Telson L 11.50 17.00

Carapace L/ aW/ pW 2.368 /1.041 /2.857 3.266 /1.633 /3.796

Preocular L 1.072 1.510

Metasoma I L/ W/ D 1.510 /1.612 /1.408 2.123 /2.204 /1.878

Metasoma II L/ W/ D 1.714 /1.429 /1.388 2.449 /2.000 /1.959

Metasoma III L/ W/ D 1.959 /1.388 /1.388 2.602 /1.970 /1.908

Metasoma IV L/ W/ D 2.143 /1.408 /1.347 3.082 /2.000 /1.837

Metasoma V L/ W/ D 2.612 /1.327 /1.174 3.653 /1.837 /1.596

Telson L 2.306 2.898

Vesicle L/ W/ D 1.347 /0.898 /0.847 1.755 /1.286 /1.190

Pedipalp chela L/ W/ D 2.531 /0.500 /0.531 3.429 /0.755 /0.806

Pedipalp movable finger L 1.633 2.204

Pedipalp manus ventral L 0.918 1.286

Pedipalp fixed finger L 1.367 1.735

Pedipalp femur L/ W 1.551 /0.612 2.041 /0.837

Pedipalp patella L/ W 2.000 /0.786 2.755 /1.102

Pectine L 2.204 2.633

No. of lateral eyes Left/ Right 5/ 5 5/ 5

three specimens during day under stones lying in sand near Acacia trees. In addition to N. eritreaensis sp. n. the second author recorded at this locality Compsobuthus sp. and Parabuthus abyssinicus (Pocock, 1901) .