Barbaracurus KovarIk, Lowe et Stahlavsky 2018
Creators: name: Kovařík, František
name: Lowe, Graeme
name: Šťáhlavský, František
name: Just, Pavel
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2022
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Scorpiones
Buthidae
Barbaracurus

description: Barbaracurus KovařÍk, Lowe et Šťáhlavský, 2018
(Figs. 1–107, Table 1)
Babycurus: Kraepelin, 1913: 179–183 (in part); Fet & Lowe, 2000: 76–80 (in part); KovařÍk, 2000: 244–245, 255–256, 260–262, figs. 10, 13, 21–22, 26, 38–40, tables 1–3 (in part); KovařÍk, 2009: 30 (in part); KovařÍk et al., 2015: 1–31 (in part), figs. 46–123.
Barbaracurus KovařÍk, Lowe et Šťáhlavský, 2018b: 4–41, figs. 1–10, 24–28, 32–36, 50–251, 258–262, tabs. 1–2; KovařÍk et al., 2019: 1–11, figs. 1–46, table 1.
TYPE SPECIES. Babycurus sofomarensis KovařÍk, Lowe, Seiter, PlÍšková et Šťáhlavský, 2015.
DIAGNOSIS. Small to medium-sized buthids, adult total length 20–60 mm. Carapace granular, lacking distinct carinae; flat, subrectangular with concave anterior margin. Median eyes on low ocular tubercle located at 1/3 of carapace length from anterior margin. Carapace usually bearing 4, or sometimes 5 pairs of lateral eyes (3 major ocelli, 1–2 minor ocelli). Anterior, central and posterior median furrows distinct, connected by median groove over ocular tubercle. Sternum type 1, triangular in shape. Tergites I – VI granular, with single median carina which may be obsolete on I–II, tergite VII with 5 carinae. Metasoma elongate, segment I with 10 carinae; segments II–IV with 8 carinae, lacking lateral median carina. Metasoma V convex, may be dilated, with carinae either present or obsolete. Telson ellipsoidal, pyriform or slightly bulbous, with a distinct subaculear tooth. Pectines with fulcra. Hemispermatophore capsule with 2-lobed sperm hemiduct and oblique carinate or scoop-like basal lobe, which may be obsolete. Chelicerae with typical buthid dentition (Vachon, 1963), fixed finger with two accessory denticles on ventral surface. Pedipalps orthobothriotaxic, type Aβ; femur with ‘trichobothrium’ d 2 internal; patella with trichobothrium d 3 external to dorsomedian carina, esb 2 close to esb 1; chela with trichobothrium Eb 2 distal to Eb 1, db in distal half of fixed finger. Chela manus smooth, with carinae reduced or obsolete; dentate margins of chela movable finger with 6–7 nonimbricated, almost linear or contiguous rows of granules, each row terminated proximally by an enlarged granule flanked by single adjacent internal and external accessory granules. Most proximal granule row without internal accessory denticle, and either with (in species from the Horn of Africa and Arabian Peninsula) or without (in species from Cameroon and Nigeria) a single isolated external accessory granule midway along its length. Chela fixed and movable fingers bearing numerous short macrosetae with blunt, micropapillate tips. Pedipalp chelae sexually dimorphic, males typically with manus dilated and dentate margins of fingers proximally undulate; denticles of undulate subproximal granule rows in males are bicuspid. Tibial spurs absent on leg III, present on leg IV, tibia and tarsus I–IV without bristle combs, ventral surfaces of tarsi equipped with two rows of setae, ungues stout.
SUBORDINATE TAXA. B. exquisitus (Lowe, 2000) (Oman), B. feti KovařÍk et al., 2019 (Somaliland), B. kabateki sp. n. (Saudi Arabia), B. prudenti (Lourenço, 2013) (Cameroon), B. sofomarensis (KovařÍk et al., 2015) (Ethiopia), B. somalicus (Hirst, 1907) (Somaliland), B. subpunctatus (Borelli, 1925) (Ethiopia, Somalia), B. ugartei (KovařÍk, 2000) (Nigeria), B. winklerorum KovařÍk et al., 2018 (Oman), B. yemenensis KovařÍk et al., 2018 (Saudi Arabia, Yemen), B. zambonellii (Borelli, 1902) (Eritrea).
Key to species of Barbaracurus
1. Pedipalp movable finger without an external accessory granule midway along most proximal granule row. ........ 2
– Pedipalp movable finger with an external accessory granule midway along most proximal granule row. ..................... 3
2. Base color uniformly yellow or orange, without any darker markings; sternite VII with very weak carination. ............. ............................................ B. prudenti (Lourenço, 2013)
– Base color yellow with brown spots on carapace, dark stripes on tergites, dark pedipalp patella and metasoma V; sternite VII with 4 well developed carinae. ........................ ................................................. B. ugartei (KovařÍk, 2000)
3. Pedipalp movable finger with 6 rows of granules. .......... 4
– Pedipalp movable finger with 7 rows of granules. .......... 7
4. Pedipalp chela with narrower manus, chela length/ width ratio 4.3–5.6, finger margins weakly undulate at base, not leaving gap when closed (figs. 81, 84, 86 in KovařÍk et al., 2015) ............................................................................... 5
– Pedipalp chela with broader manus, chela length/ width ratio 3.4–4.2, finger margins strongly undulate at base, leaving wide gap when closed. ......................................... 6
5. Total length 22.5 mm in male, 32.1–32.25 mm in females; pectines with 16–17 teeth in both sexes; distributed in Ethiopia and Somalia. .... B. subpunctatus (Borelli, 1925)
– Total length 31.25 mm in male, 38.80 mm in female; pectines with 25–27 teeth in both sexes; distributed in Somaliland .............................. B. feti KovařÍk et al., 2019
6. Telson vesicle pyriform in lateral profile, deeper anteriorly (figs. 83–84 in KovařÍk et al., 2018b); telson length/ depth ratio 2.75–2.89; pedipalp movable finger of female very weakly undulate at base; hemispermatophore basal lobe a weak carina (figs. 27, 35 in KovařÍk et al., 2018b) ............ ................................................. B. somalicus (Hirst, 1907)
– Telson vesicle symmetric in lateral profile (figs. 76–77 in KovařÍk et al., 2015); telson length/ depth ratio 2.60–2.73; pedipalp movable finger of female moderately undulate at base; hemispermatophore basal lobe a well developed scoop-like lamina (figs. 26, 34 in KovařÍk et al., 2018b) ... .............................. B. sofomarensis (KovařÍk et al., 2015)
7. Pedipalp chela with broader manus (Figs 53–55, and figs. 58, 60 in KovařÍk et al., 2018b), chela length/ width ratio 4.28–5.43 (♀), 3.2–3.42 (♂); proximal margins of pedipalp fingers of male strongly undulate, leaving gap with fingers closed (Fig. 54, and fig. 59 in KovařÍk et al., 2018b) ...... 8
– Pedipalp chela with narrower manus (Figs. 7–9, figs. 62, 64, 66, 68, 210, 212 in KovařÍk et al., 2018b), chela length/ width ratio 4.07–6.12 (♀, ♂); proximal margins of pedipalp fingers of male weakly undulate, not leaving gap with fingers closed (Fig. 8, and figs. 62–67 in KovařÍk et al., 2018b). ....................................................................... 9
8. Pectines with 17–19 teeth (♀, ♂); telson more bulbous, length/ depth ratio 2.27–2.37 (♀, ♂); distributed in Africa (Eritrea). ............................ B. zambonellii (Borelli, 1902)
– Pectines with 22–25 (♂) 19–23 (♀) teeth; telson less bulbous, length/ depth ratio 2.48–2.70 (♀, ♂); distributed in Arabian Peninsula. ......................................................... ..................................... B. yemenensis KovařÍk et al., 2018
9. Metasoma V length/ width ratio 2.71 (♂); pedipalp chela length/ width ratio 4.07 (♂); hemispermatophore basal lobe obsolete, reduced to a weak ridge (Figs. 102–103); found in Saudi Arabia. ........................................ B. kabateki sp. n.
– Metasoma V length/ width ratio 2.40–2.47 (♂); pedipalp chela length/ width ratio 4.24–4.70 (♂); hemispermatophore basal lobe a well developed scoop-like lamina (figs. 24– 25, 32–33 in KovařÍk et al., 2018b); found in Oman. – Telson less slender (figs. 85–87 in KovařÍk et al., 2018b), length/ depth ratio 2.70–2.72 (♂, ♀); not found in northern Oman. ...................... B. winklerorum KovařÍk et al., 2018
description: Published as part of Kovařík, František, Lowe, Graeme, Šťáhlavský, František & Just, Pavel, 2022, The genus Barbaracurus in Saudi Arabia (Scorpiones: Buthidae), with description of a new species., pp. 1-26 in Euscorpius 365 on pages 1-23, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.7616748