Heteroctenus princeps Lauren A. Esposito & Humberto Y. Yamaguti & Cláudio A. Souza & Ricardo Pinto-Da-Rocha & Lorenzo Prendini 2017, comb. nov.
Creators: name: Lauren A. Esposito
name: Humberto Y. Yamaguti
name: Cláudio A. Souza
name: Ricardo Pinto-Da-Rocha
name: Lorenzo Prendini
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2017
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Scorpiones
Buthidae
Heteroctenus
Heteroctenus princeps

description: Heteroctenus princeps (Karsch, 1879), comb. nov.
Figures 4 B, 12B, 14E, 18E, 23L–N, 27B, D, 29E, 30E, 35
Centrurus princeps Karsch, 1879b: 121, 122; Kraepelin, 1891: 123, 139; Pocock, 1893: 385, 391; Kraepelin, 1899: 89, 95; Werner, 1927: 357.
Rhopalurus princeps: Pocock, 1902a: 37; Mello- Leitão, 1932: 15; Stahnke and Calos, 1977: 119; Armas, 1981b: 2 –5, figs. 1, 2, table 1; 1982a: 4; 1982b: 5, table 2; Lourenço, 1982a: 114, 136, figs. 2–9, 24, 78, table 1 (part); 1984a: 169, 170; 1986b: 165, fig. 7; Armas and Marcano Fondeur, 1987: 20, 23, fig. 4, pl. II, tables 10, 11; Armas, 1988: 70, 71, 93; Lourenço, 1992: 55; Rudloff, 1994: 9; Lourenço, 1997a: 590; Kovařík, 1998: 118; Fet and Lowe, 2000: 221; Armas, 2001: 246; Kamenz and Prendini, 2008: 9, table 2, pl. 43; Perez-Gelabert, 2008: 68; Volschenk et al., 2008: 654, 658, 659, 663, 664, 674, fig. 1B, tables 1, 2; Prendini et al., 2009: 206, 207, 209–213, 216, 219, 220, 222, 223, figs. 1, 4, 5E, F, 6C, 7C, 10, table 3; Lourenço and Armas, 2015: 228, 229; Santos et al., 2016: 3, 9, fig. 2B.
Rhopalurus testaceus princeps: Meise, 1934: 32, 38.
TYPE MATERIAL: Centrurus princeps, holotype ♂ (ZMB 116), HAITI: Dept. Ouest: Port-au- Prince [examined].
DIAGNOSIS: Heteroctenus princeps is most closely related to H. abudi, with which it shares pronounced sexual dimorphism of the pedipalp chelae, and differs from the third Heteroctenus species occurring on Hispaniola, H. bonettii. The chela manus of the adult male H. princeps is incrassate and the fingers strongly curved proximally (fixed finger curved dorsally, movable finger curved ventrally), such that only the distal portion of the fingers connect and a distinctive gap is present between them proximally, when closed (fig. 27B). The chela manus of the female is not incrassate and the fingers not curved proximally, such that they connect along most of their length and little to no gap is present between them proximally, when closed (fig. 27D). However, the pedipalp chela manus of H. princeps is shorter and more incrassate, with more weakly developed carinae, than that of H. abudi.
Other characters by which H. princeps differs from H. abudi and H. bonettii are as follows. The carapace of H. princeps is shorter and broader than that of H. abudi and H. bonettii (fig. 14A, B, E). The carapace and tergites are more coarsely and densely granular in H. princeps than in H. bonettii and, to a lesser extent, H. abudi. The pectines of H. princeps are narrower basally, with a less-pronounced basal plate than in H. bonettii and, to a lesser extent, H. abudi (fig. 18A, B, E). The pectinal teeth are similar in size in H. princeps whereas the first 6–7 pectinal teeth are noticeably larger in H. bonettii. The carapace and tergites are more coarsely and densely granular in H. princeps than in H. abudi and H. bonettii. The submedian sulci of sternite III are convergent in H. princeps but subparallel in H. bonettii (fig. 18B, E). The pale, raised posteromedial surface of sternite V in the male is less prominent in H. princeps than in H. bonettii. The metasomal segments of H. princeps are shorter and broader, i.e., the width/length ratio is smaller, than H. bonettii and, to a lesser extent, H. abudi (fig. 28A, B, E). The granulation, ventromedian and ventrolateral carinae of metasomal segment V are less developed, compared with those of the preceding segments in H. princeps, such that the segment has a shinier, rounded appearance, as in H. abudi (fig. 29A, E).
Unlike H. abudi, the coloration of H. bonettii is predominantly pale (fig. 35); the carapace, legs, and tergites immaculate; the pedipalp chelae, metasoma (segments IV and V only) and telson infuscate. In this respect, H. princeps resembles H. bonettii except for the pedipalp chelae, which are typically immaculate in the latter.
DISTRIBUTION: Heteroctenus princeps is endemic to Hispaniola and inhabits the central part of the island (fig. 4B), including the valley of the Yaque del Norte River, the Neiba Valley, the Sierra de Baoruco, Sierra de Martín García, and Sierra de Ocoa (Teruel, 2006). Although the type locality is in Haiti (Département du l’Ouest), most of the known localities are in the Dominican Republic (Azua, Barahona, Baoruco, Independencia, Montecristi, Pedernales, and Peravia provinces) at altitudes ranging from below sea level at Isla Cabritos to 485 m in the Sierra de Baoruco. Records from Cuba listed by Fet and Lowe (2000: 221) are erroneous.
ECOLOGY: Heteroctenus princeps inhabits dry scrub on mixed substrata. It has been collected by day under bark, wood, and stones, as well as in dead and dry agave plants, and at night with UV light detection. The habitat and habitus are consistent with the lapidicolous ecomorphotype (Prendini, 2001b). The buthid, C. bani, has been collected in sympatry.
MATERIAL EXAMINED: DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Independencia Prov.: Parque Nacional Isla Cabritos: Isla Cabritos, 18°30.019′N 71°43.228′W, 110 ft, 7.i.2004, J. Huff, under rock, coral, 6 ♂, 4 ♀, 3 subad., 17 juv. (AMNH), 3 juv. (AMCC [LP 2470]), 1 subad., 2 juv. (AMCC [LP 3260]); Ranger station, 18°33′45″N 71°41′50″W, - 19 m, 8.vii.2004, E.S. Volschenk and J. Huff, dry forest, hand collected from under stones and logs, and with blacklights, 3 ♂, 7 ♀, 6 subad., 2 juv. (AMNH), 1 subad. (AMCC [LP 3264]); behind Ranger Station, 18.56287°N 71.69762°W, - 23 m, 8.viii.2005, L. Esposito, mixed dry forest with succulents, UV detection, 35°C, 3 ♂, 8 ♀, 2 subad. ♀, 32 1 st instars (AMNH), 1 ♂ (AMCC [LP 5102]); park entrance to Lago Enriquillo, 18°33.772′N 71°41.859′W, 18 m, 21.ii.2012, J. Huff and R.C. West, 1 juv. ♂ (AMCC [LP 12102]). Parque Nacional Sierra de Bahoruco: road between Rabo de Gato and Duverge, 18°19′38″N 71°33′55″W, 447 m, 7.vii.2004, E.S. Volschenk and J. Huff, arid thorny scrub, hand collected from under stones and in dead and dry agaves, 3 ♂, 3 ♀, 4 juv. (AMNH), 1 ♀ (AMCC [LP 3263]); Puerto Escondido, Sierra de Bahoruco, 18°19.762′N 71°33.502′W, 1592 ft, 6.i.2004, J. Huff, under dead agave, 1 ♂, 3 ♀, 1 juv. (AMNH), 1 juv. (AMCC [LP 3261]); Puerto Escondido, 6 km NNE, 18°21.084′N 71°32.048′W, 240 m, 6. vii.2010, J. Huff and S. Schoenbrun, 1 subad. ♂ (AMCC [LP 10523]); road to Puerto Escondido, 18°20.376′N 71°33.345′W, 1388 ft, 6.i.2004, J. Huff, under rocks in gravel quarry, 1 ♀ (AMNH), 1 juv. (AMCC [LP 3262]). La Altagracia Prov.: San Rafael, El Morro Monte Cristi, 19°47.34′N 70°43.02′W, 40 m, 22.vi.2012, CarBio team, 1 ♀ (AMCC [LP 12479]), 1 subad. ♂ (AMCC [LP 12478]). Pedernales Prov.: Manuel Goja, 3.9. km N, 17°50′20.81″N 71°27′18.84″W, 9.v.1998, D. Huber, 1 ♂ (AMCC [LP 1566]); Oviedo to Pedernales, 11.5 km N, 17°56′18.69″N 71°32′37.25″W, 8.v.1998, D. Huber, 1 ♂ (AMCC [LP 1516]).
description: Published as part of Lauren A. Esposito, Humberto Y. Yamaguti, Cláudio A. Souza, Ricardo Pinto-Da-Rocha & Lorenzo Prendini, 2017, Systematic Revision of the Neotropical Club-Tailed Scorpions, Physoctonus, Rhopalurus, and Troglorhopalurus, Revalidation of Heteroctenus, and Descriptions of Two New Genera and Three New Species (Buthidae: Rhopalurusinae), pp. 1-134 in Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 415 on pages 51-55, DOI: 10.1206/0003-0090-415.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/851382