Neobuthus cloudsleythompsoni Lourenço, 2001

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 : 4-14

Neobuthus cloudsleythompsoni Lourenço, 2001

( Figs. 7–42, 96, 148–150, 157, 161, Tables 1, 4–5)

Neobuthus cloudsleythompsoni Lourenço, 2001: 179– 182 , figs. 15–21; Kovařík, 2003: 137–138; Fet et al., 2005: 12; Lourenço, 2005: 28; Kovařík & Lowe, 2012: 16.

TYPE LOCALITY AND TYPE REPOSITORY. Ethiopia, lower valley of the Omo River , MNHN .

MATERIAL EXAMINED. Ethiopia, Southern Nationalities and Peoples Region Federal State ( SNNPR), "lower valley of the Omo river", Chew Bahr , 04°50'38.5" N 36°44'11.4" E, 625 m a.s.l. (Locality No. 13 EW), 5.– 6.VII.2013, 43♂ 6♀8♀ ims., leg. F. Kovařík, V. Socha, V. Trailin ( UV detection), FKCP, GL .

EMENDED DIAGNOSIS. Total length 18.5–19 mm (males), 23–25 mm (females); carapace with area between anterior median carinae yellow; tergites with 3 dark stripes, median stripe flanked on either side by broad, continuous longitudinal yellow bands; pedipalp relatively stout, males with femur L/ W 2.05 –2.38; patella L/ W 2.31 –2.57, chela L/ W 4.40 –5.50; chela movable finger with 4–6 subrows of primary denticles, 3–4 external accessory denticles flanking proximal end of each subrow; trichobothria d 2 usually present on patella; 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 with 4 granulated carinae; females with sternites III–VI smooth, sternite VII sparsely shagreened with 4 weak carinae, median carinae smooth or weakly granulated; metasoma I–III with median lateral carinae present in both sexes; lateral surface of metasoma V in males densely granulated, with granules close but separated; soles of telotarsi with sparse setation, leg III of adults with 7–10 macrosetae in retroinferior series of basitarsus, 13–20 ventral setae on telotarsus; pectine teeth: 15–19 (males), 12–15 (females).

REDESCRIPTION (MALE).

Coloration ( Figs. 7–8, 11–13, 19, 31–33, 34–37, 41). Base color yellow with patterns of dark maculation. Carapace with fuscosity extending over lateral interocular triangle from ocular tubercle, but dark pigment excluded from area between anterior median carinae; fuscosity patchy on lateral flanks, alternating with yellow areas; posterior median area with fuscous median longitudinal band behind ocular tubercle; posterior lateral area with fuscous edge bordering posterior median zone, reticulate marking on posterior marginal area; ocular tubercle black, surrounded by yellow patches laterally and posteriorly; posterior margin of carapace with dark lateral borders and median triangular patch. Tergites 3-striped, with fuscosity arranged longitudinally in narrow median and broad lateral bands; pale patches on either side of median stripe wide, forming broad longitudinal yellow bands; on each tergite, lateral bands with fuscosity more solid 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 mostly yellow with sparse reticulated fuscosity; dorsal surface of I–III with median line and Y-shaped pattern, of IV trilineate; dorsolateral carinae I–IV marked by broad stripe; lateral and ventral surfaces yellow on I–II, with fuscous stripes on ventrolateral and ventrosubmedian carinae on III–IV, the stripes broader and darker on IV; segment V covered by more extensive reticulated fuscosity, dorsal surface with single yellow anteromedian stripe, ventral surface with 2 pairs of yellow anterolateral stripes, posterior margin of V yellow on all sides. Telson vesicle almost yellow, with faint traces of fuscosity, aculeus yellow on basal half, dark reddish-black on distal half. Chelicera with broad fuscous band extending over anterior dorsal area of manus, interrupted by large, pale patch on internal aspect, remainder of dorsal surface pale, lacking reticulations. Pedipalps with fuscous markings on carinae of femur and patella, more extensive fuscosity on distal dorsal and distal internal surfaces of femur, and ventroexternal and ventrointernal surfaces of patella; patella uniformly yellow on dorsal surface between dorsoexternal and dorsointernal carinae; ventral surface of femur and patella pale yellow; pedipalp chela manus with weak fuscosity in longitudinal bands and broad distal areas; pedipalp fingers yellow. Legs with fuscous longitudinal stripes along distal half of dorsal, retrosuperior and proinferior surfaces of femur, and retrodorsal surface of patella.

Carapace ( Figs. 7, 11, 13, 41). Strongly trapezoidal, anterior width 0.40–0.60 times posterior width, wider than long (L/ W 0.88 –1.0); 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 0.43–0.44 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 7–9 macrosetae; lateral margins finely denticulate; anterior median carinae weak, coarsely granular, without macrosetae; other carinae indistinct; dense granulation covering most of carapace, interrupted only by 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 microdenticulations; macrosetae absent on carapace except for anterior margin, and 1–2 small macrosetae that may or may not occur on posterior margin.

Chelicera. Manus smooth on dorsal side, with subapical transverse series of granules; dorsointernal carina at base of fixed finger strong, almost smooth; chaetotaxy: 4 straight macrosetae on anterior dorsal surface, including 1 dark seta on dorsointernal carina, 1 pale seta on subapical margin, 2 pale setae on apical margin; 3 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, medium-sized 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. 8, 12). Coxae finely granulated, coxa I–II endites with weaker, sparser granulation, almost smooth; coxae I–III with sparse short to medium length reddish macrosetae: 5–8 on coxa I, 5–8 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 2–3 short reddish macrosetae; genital papillae present.

Pectines ( Figs 8, 12). Basal piece smooth, with deep Vshaped anterior median invagination, 2–4 short reddish macrosetae; pectines long, distal tips extending to proximal 0.3–0.4 of length of trochanter IV; combs with 3 marginal lamellae, 6–7 middle lamellae, 15–19 teeth; posterobasal vertex of basal middle lamella extended, angulate; marginal lamellae, middle lamellae and fulcra with dense cover of short light reddish macrosetae; fulcra with 2–5 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. 38–40). Elongate, slender, trunk 9.15 times length of capsule region; flagellum well separated from external lobe, pars recta short with internal lamina, pars reflecta narrower, cylindriform; capsule region with 4 lobes at base of flagellum; external lobe longest, apically rounded; median lobe carinate, apically truncate; internal lobe acuminate, same length as median lobe; basal lobe strongly developed, forming a pointed hook.

Mesosoma ( Figs. 7–8, 11–13, 41). Moderately elongate, 2.0–2.4 times length of carapace. Tergites: pretergites smooth with finely micro-granular posterior margins; tergites I–VI a weak granular median carina only developed in posterior half; tergites II–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 outer lateral carinae weakly indicated, granular; 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 covered with dense, fine granulation (finer near anterior margins), with transverse slit-like spiracles; areas of III covered by pectines very finely micro-shagreened; sternite V with narrow posterior marginal smooth patch free of granulation, widest medially; sternite VII densely, finely granulated, posterior 2/3 with 4 weak, granular carinae; lateral margins of all sternites finely denticulate; sternite macrosetae (non-marginal/ marginal): III 11– 13/8–9, IV 4/13–16, V 6/11–12, VI 4–6/9–11, VII 6– 7/3–5; setae on sternite VII shorter, thicker than setae on III–VI.

Metasoma ( Figs. 7–8, 31–33, 41). Moderately elongate, total length of segments I–V 1.4 times length of prosoma + mesosoma; segment I as wide as long, segments II–V progressively longer than wide (L/W ratio increasing from 1.25 to 2.01); carination: segments I–II with 10 carinae, III with 8 carinae, IV–V with 2 carinae; segments I–III with moderate to strong, granulate or crenulate ventrosubmedian and ventrolateral carinae, weak, granulate lateral median carinae, and very weak or slightly indicated, granulate dorsolateral and dorsosubmedian carinae; segment III with strong, granulate ventrosubmedian and ventrolateral carinae, very weak or slightly indicated, granulate lateral median, dorsolateral and dorsosubmedian carinae; median lateral carinae complete on I–II, obsolete on anterior 1/5 of III; segment IV with weak, crenulated ventrolateral carinae; segment V with strong, granulate to 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, lateral surface with coarse, scaly granulation, ventral surface with many large, coarse granules, some arranged in trace of ventromedian carina; lateral anal lobe with weak notch towards ventral end, ventral anal arc with 10–13 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 5–7 setae near dorsal and ventral margins, ventral surface with sparsely scattered setae; dorsal surfaces of all segments bare; all metasomal setae short, straight, reddish, shorter and more stout than coxosternal and sternal setae.

Telson ( Figs. 7–8, 31–33, 41). Vesicle relatively bulbous, posterior surface steeply sloped, not quite truncate; aculeus stout, shorter than vesicle, tip of aculeus directed sub-vertically; ventral surface with scattered anteriorlydirected, stout, reddish macrosetae.

Pedipalps ( Figs. 7–8, 17, 19, 41). Femur: relatively stout, 2.2–2.4 times longer than wide; dorsoexternal and external carinae weak, granulated; other carinae obsolete; dorsal, external and upper internal surfaces with coarse granulation, lower internal and ventral surfaces finely granulated, shagreened or almost smooth; 6–8 distal external accessory macrosetae. Patella: less stout, 2.3–2.6 times longer than wide; external, dorsomedian, dorsointernal, internal and ventrointernal carinae weak, finely granulated; other carinae obsolete; dorsal and upper internal surfaces with dense, coarse granulation, lower internal surface with fine granulation, external and ventral surfaces finely shagreened or almost smooth; short, straight reddish macrosetae scattered sparsely over carinae. Chela: Short, relatively stout, 4.4–5.5 times longer than wide; fingers robust, movable finger 1.8–2.0 times manus ventral length; carinae obsolete, but with weak to very weak granulation indicating positions of dorsointernal, dorsal marginal, digital and external carinae; manus, fixed and movable fingers equipped with numerous short, straight, reddish macrosetae; numerous fine, translucent microsetae on fingers; fixed finger with 4 subdistal denticles proximal to distal tooth, 3–6 (4–5 in 9/12 fingers) primary denticle subrows, 3 external and 4–5 internal accessory denticles; movable finger with 4 subdistal denticles proximal to distal tooth, 3–5 (5 in 10/12 fingers) primary denticle subrows, 3–4 external and 4–5 internal accessory denticles.

Trichobothriotaxy. Orthobothriotaxic or neobothriotaxic minorante, type Aβ (Vachon, 1974); among buthid petite trichobothria, femur d 2 and patella d 2 may be reduced or absent (femur d 2 was absent in 7/8 examined femora, patella d 2 was present in 8/8 examined patellae), chela Eb 3, Esb and esb usually present; patella with esb 1 level with or slightly distal to esb 2.

Legs ( Figs. 34–37). Relatively short, stout; femora with finely denticulate carinae, surfaces granulated prolaterally, 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 basally bifurcate (weakly so on I), bearing 0–1 macrosetae; chaetotaxy: coxa, femora, patella and tibia of all legs bearing variable numbers of very short, straight reddish macrosetae; tarsi with mix of short and longer, reddish macrosetae; basitarsi I–III compressed, 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 4–5/6–9, II 4–6/9–11, III 5– 7/8–11; telotarsi with two rows of short setae on ventral aspect, 15–20 setae on telotarsus III.

Female ( Figs. 9–10, 14–16, 18, 20–30, 42, 148–150, 157). Coloration pattern very similar to that of male, but with fuscosity reduced or absent on dorsointernal surface of pedipalp patella (which thus appears mostly yellow on dorsal side). Other differences include: larger size (total length of adult males 18.5–19 mm, adult females 23–25 mm); carapace wider (L/ W 0.89 –1.00 in males, 0.85–0.87 in females), with much weaker granulation; tergites I–VI with much weaker, sparser granulation, anterior areas weakly, finely shagreened to smooth; tergite VII with weaker, finer granulation; weak, granulated median carinae present on metasomal segments I–III; metasomal segments I–III with weaker, finer granulation on intercarinal surfaces, dorsal surfaces very sparsely granular, weakly shagreened to smooth; segments II–III with stronger dentate granulation on ventrosubmedian carinae, posterior denticles larger than anterior denticles; female with lower mean number of denticles on ventrosubmedian carinae II (P = 0.0007) and III (P = 0.0001), the mean value of (left count + right count)/ 2 in males being II: 17.98 ± 1.68, III: 15.78 ± 1.53 (range II: 16–22, III 13–21, N = 20), and in females being II: 14.00 ± 2.61, III: 11.75 ± 1.71 (range II: 10–17, III 10– 16, N = 4); segment IV smooth dorsally, weakly granu-

Neobuthus

cloudsleythompsoni

Lourenço

,

2001

Measurement

(

mm

)

♂

♂

♀

Total L 18.50 19.00 23.00

Metasoma + Telson L 11.50 12.00 14.70

Carapace L/ aW/ pW 2.368 /1.143 /2.674 2.408 /1.102 /2.629 2.810 /1.459 /3.245

Preocular L 1.021 1.061 1.327

Metasoma I L/ W/ D 1.470 /1.470 /1.286 1.490 /1.514 /1.296 1.678 /1.735 /1.510

Metasoma II L/ W/ D 1.684 /1.337 /1.286 1.755 /1.408 /1.296 2.041 /1.551 /1.510

Metasoma III L/ W/ D 1.837 /1.327 /1.306 1.959 /1.388 /1.265 2.286 /1.510 /1.470

Metasoma IV L/ W/ D 2.204 /1.306 /1.225 2.286 /1.388 /1.245 2.572 /1.510 /1.347

Metasoma V L/ W/ D 2.633 /1.337 /1.143 2.715 /1.388 /1.184 3.225 /1.592 /1.270

Telson L 2.408 2.837

Vesicle L/ W/ D 1.470 /0.939 /0.857 1.470 /0.980 /0.894 1.633 /1.184 /1.123

Pedipalp chela L/ W/ D 2.398 /0.545 /0.531 2.531 /0.531 /0.592 3.123 /0.735 /0.776

Pedipalp movable finger L 1.955 1.837 2.531

Pedipalp manus ventral L 0.878 0.837 1.102

Pedipalp fixed finger L 1.265 1.388 1.633

Pedipalp femur L/ W 1.449 /0.620 1.551 /0.653 1.633 /0.735

Pedipalp patella L/ W 1.980 /0.857 2.000 /0.796 2.449 /0.959

Pectine L 2.327 2.443 2.123

No. of lateral eyes Left/ Right 5 /5 5 /5 5/4

late laterally, strongly granulate ventrally; segment V with larger lobate granules on posterior ventrolateral carinae, lateral surface smooth (not granulate); telson more bulbous, vesicle with steeper posterior face (may be truncate), aculeus more stout with tip directed at shallower angle; sternites III–VI completely smooth; sternite VII smooth except for very faintly shagreened posteromedial area, and lightly shagreened posterolateral area, medial carinae very weak or obsolete, lateral carinae weak, smooth; genital opercula more elongated, with 4–7 setae; pectine basal piece with shallower, broader anterior invagination, not strongly V-shaped; pectines with smaller teeth, shorter, distal tips extending to or just short of distal limit of coxa IV, 5–6 middle lamellae, basal middle lamella considerably narrower along axial dimension; pedipalp femur and 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 of legs smooth on prolateral surfaces; macrosetae on pedipalps, legs, metasoma and telson moderately longer and finer than in the male.

Measurements. See Tab. 1.

VARIATION. For variation in selected morphometric ratios and meristics, see Tabs. 4–5. Coloration patterns were consistent over the examined material, although the fuscous markings were darker in some individuals than in others.

COMPARISONS. Pectinal tooth counts for N. cloudsleythompsoni were significantly lower than for N. eritreaensis sp. n., N. awashensis and N. kutcheri sp. n.. Compared to males of N. awashensis , males of N. cloudsleythompsoni have a higher mean number of denticles on ventromedian carinae of metasoma II (P = 0.0014) and III (P = 0.0243); mean value of (left count + right count)/ 2 in N. awashensis was II: 15.17 ± 1.66, III: 13.75 ± 2.60 (range II: 11–18, III 10–16, N = 6).

REMARKS. In the original description, the holotype male was characterized as being orthobothriotaxic, but its depicted trichobothrial map shows several peculiarities: (i) on the pedipalp chela manus, trichobothrium Eb 3 is missing, a neobothriotaxic condition ( Lourenço, 2001: 180, fig. 18); in contrast, we always observed Eb 3 on the manus (N = 18 chelae) ( Fig. 27); (ii) on the pedipalp fixed finger, trichobothrium i is plotted in a far distal position, at 73 % of the distance from dt to the tip of the fixed finger ( Lourenço, 2001: 180, fig. 18); in contrast, we found that trichobothrium i was located more proximally, at 50–60 % of the distance from dt to the tip of the fixed finger (N = 17 fingers) ( Figs. 25–26); (iii) on the pedipalp patella, trichobothrium d 4 is plotted distal to d 5 ( Lourenço, 2001: 180, fig. 17), an unprecedented configuration; in contrast, we found that d 4 was invariably located proximal to d 5 (N = 18 patellae) ( Fig. 21), consistent with all other known type A patterns in extant buthids ( Fet et al., 2005; Vachon, 1974).

COMMENTS ON LOCALITIES AND LIFE STRATEGY. The second author visited the locality 13EW ( Fig. 96) on 5 July 2013, spent a night there and collected with UV light 80 specimens of Neobuthus cloudsleythompsoni . Males were active immediately after sunset and were very common but the first adult female was collected at 21:30 h and other females near 23:00 h. Specimens were mostly found motionless on sand and remain so when picked up, faking death (this cataleptic behavior is also observed in all other species of Neobuthus ). At the locality, the second author recorded on 5 July 2013, during day a temperature 34 ºC and humidity 43%, during sunset at 19:20 h a temperature of 28.7 ºC, which gradually dropped to 24.4 ºC (minimum temperature) before sunrise. Humidity during the night was a constant 40%. In addition to N. cloudsleythompsoni the second author recorded at this locality Hottentotta trilineatus (Peters, 1861) , Parabuthus sp. and P. pallidus Pocock, 1895 .