Mesobuthus eupeus phillipsii (Pocock, 1889)

Kovařík, František, ², Ersen Aydın Yağmur, Fet, Victor & Navidpour, Shahrokh, 2011, On two subspecies of Mesobuthus eupeus (C. L. Koch, 1839) in Turkey (Scorpiones: Buthidae), Euscorpius 109 (109), pp. 1-15 : 5-12

Mesobuthus eupeus phillipsii (Pocock, 1889)

Figures 12–15, 17–18, 21–22, 24–26.

Buthus phillipsii Pocock, 1889a: 341 ; Weidner, 1959: 99.

Buthus phillipsi : Kraepelin, 1899: 24; Birula, 1905: 131; Borelli, 1915: 460; Werner, 1916: 80; Lampe, 1918: 191.

Mesobuthus phillipsi : Vachon, 1950: 153 (1952: 325); Pérez Minocci, 1974: 25.

Mesobuthus eupeus phillipsi : Vachon, 1958: 148; Vachon, 1966: 213; Habibi, 1971: 44; Farzanpay, 1986: 334; Fet, 1994: 527; Kovařík, 1997: 49; Kovařík, 1998: 114; Fet & Lowe, 2000: 175.

Mesobuthus eupeus phillipsii : Farzanpay, 1987: 150; Farzanpay, 1988: 38; Navidpour et al., 2008a: 11 ; Navidpour et al., 2008 b: 13; Navidpour et al., 2008 c: 11; Navidpour et al., 2008 d: 5; Pirali-Kheirabadi et al., 2009: 6.

Mesobuthus eupeus : Akbari, 2007: 76.

Buthus hottentotta : Kraepelin, 1891: 185 (part?).

= Buthus eupaeus mesopotamicus Penther, 1912: 111 .

Syn. n.

Buthus eupeus mesopotamicus : Birula, 1917: 39; Birula,

1918: 15.

Mesobuthus eupeus mesopotamicus : Vachon, 1958: 154;

Vachon, 1966: 212; Farzanpay, 1986: 333; Fet, 1994:

527; Kovařík, 1998: 114; Fet & Lowe, 2000: 173.

Type locality and type repository. Iran, Bushir (now Bushehr) Province , BMNH .

Material examined: IRAN, Bushehr Province, 15 km NW Bandar-e Gonaveh, 50 m a.s.l., Chahak Village env., 3–5 May 1996, 4♂ 1juv., FKCP, leg. M. Kaftan & V. Šejna ; Dayer road, Village , 26°28'12"N 51°07'40"E, 405 m a.s.l. (Locality No. Bu-21), November 2007, 1♂ 3♀, RRLS, 1im., FKCP, leg. Masihipour, Bahrani & Hayader ; Dayer , 27°49'35"N 52°04'44"E, 4 m a.s.l. (Locality No. Bu-25), November 2007, 1♀, RRLS, leg. Masihipour & Habibzadeh ; Khormuj , 28°41'46"N 51°21'49"E, 83 m a.s.l. (Locality No. Bu-31), November 2007, 1♂ 1♀, FKCP, leg. Masihipour & Habibzadeh ; Tangestan , 28°52'53"N 51°18'43", 95 m a.s.l. (Locality No. Bu-35), November 2007, 2♂ 2♀ 3juvs., RRLS, leg. Masihipour, Bahrani & Habibzadeh; Tangestan, Ahram, 28°51'45"N 51°20'50"E, 123 m a.s.l. (Locality No. Bu- 36), November 2007, 1juv., RRLS, leg. Masihipour, Bahrani & Habibzadeh; Borazjan, Dalaki, 29°23'27"N 51°16'00"E, 100 m a.s.l. (Locality No. Bu-19), November 2007, 3♂ 2♀ 1juv., RRLS, leg. Masihipour & Bahrani; Deylam road, 30°26'31"N 49°55'26"E, 85 m a.s.l. (Locality No. OM-D 804), June 2007, 2♀, FKCP, 6♂ 8♀ 10ims., RRLS, leg. Navidpour, Masihipour & Tofigh; Omidiyeh to Genaveh road, 30°13'42"N 50°12' 01"E, 128 m a.s.l. (Locality No. B-Bi805), June 2007, 8♂ 1♀ 11juvs., RRLS, leg. Navidpour & Masihipour; Borazjan, 29°16'56"N 51°15'26"E, 200 m a.s.l. (Locality No. Bu-18), February 2007, 9♂ 12♀, RRLS, leg. Masihipour, Bahrani & Habibzadeh; Borazjan, 29°16' 56"N 51°15'26"E, 200 m a.s.l. (Locality No. Bu-18.2), February 2007, 4juvs., FKCP, 8♂ 10♀ 11juvs., RRLS, leg. Masihipour, Bahrani & Habibzadeh; Genaveh, 29°13'42˝N 50°14'22˝E, 227 m a.s.l. (Locality No.Bu- G1), January 2005, 2♀, FKCP, 8♂ 2♀, RRLS, leg. Hayader & Tofigh; Bushehr (Locality No.Bu-319.1) February 2007, 1♀ 2ims., FKCP, 6♂ 11♀, RRLS, leg. Bahrani & Hayader; Behbahan–Genaveh road, 29°40.71' N 51°24.04'E, 16 m a.s.l. (Locality No. B6), July 2007, 14 specimens, RRLS, 2♂ 1♀, FKCP, leg. Navidpour & Masihipour. Chahar Mahal & Bakhtiyari Province, Shahrekord (hills of Shahrekord University), 32°21' 18"N 50°50'10"E, 2148 m a.s.l. (Locality No. SH-4), May 2007, 7♂ 5♀ 11♀ im.3juvs., RRLS, 6♂ 1juv., FKCP, leg. Pirali & Navidpour; Shahrekord, Sarteshniz Village , 32°08'51"N 50°54'11"E, 2116 m a.s.l. (Locality No. SH- 7), May 2008, 3♂ 2♀ 1♀ im.5juvs., RRLS, 2♀ 1juv., FKCP, leg. Pirali; Saman, 32°27'17"N 50°52'36"E, 2134 m a.s.l. (Locality No. SH-9), May 2008, 2♂ 4♀, RRLS, leg. Pirali; Lordegan, Milas Village , 31°30'02"N 52°02'38"E, 1840 m, October 2007, 4♂ 2♀, RRLS, leg. Pirali; Lordegan, Marvan Village , 31°33'14"N 52°06' 0 8"E, 1892 m a.s.l., October 2007, 4♂ 2♀, RRLS, leg. Pirali & Khosravi. Esfahan Province, Zagros Mts., Qamishlu Village env., 2000-2200 m a.s.l., 27-28 April 1996, 1♂ 5♀ 2juvs., FKCP, leg. M. Kaftan, D. Král and J. Pitulová. Fars Province, Zagros Mts., Abshar Village env., ca 1000 m a.s.l., 2-3 May 1996, 1♀, FKCP, leg. J. Pitulová ; Rustai Kanj , 28°10'N 55°43'E, 760 m a.s.l., 19 April 2000, 1♀, FKCP, leg. M. Kaftan ; 10 km S of Firuz Abad, 28°55'N 52°31'E, 1412 m a.s.l., 20-21 April 200 0, 1♀, FKCP, leg. J. Šobotník ; pass 140 km NE Síraãz , 20- 21 April 2002, 1♀ 1im., FKCP, leg. P. Kabátek. Ilam Province, Ilam to Mehran road, Saleh Abad Village , 33º32.40'N 46º08.74'E, 683 m a.s.l. (Locality No. IL-821), X.2007, 3♂ 1♀ im., RRLS, leg. Masihipour & Hayader ; Mehran to Dehloran road, 32°55.42'N 46°41.32'E, 375 m a.s.l. (Locality No. IL-822), X.2007, 2♀ 1juv., FKCP, 4♂ 1♀ 1juv., RRLS, leg. Hayader, Masihipour & Bahrani ; Dehloran road, 33º02.33'N 46º34.94'E, 280 m a.s.l. (Locality No. IL-823), X.2007, 1♀, RRLS, leg. Masihipour, Habibzadeh & Bahrani ; Dehloran , 32°36.36'N 47°20.26'E, 146 m a.s.l. (Locality No. IL-825), X.2007, 1♀ im., RRLS, leg. Masihipour, Hayader, Habibzadeh & Bahrani ; Murmury to Dehloran road, 32°25.72'N 47°48.32'E, 171 m a.s.l. (Locality No. IL-827), X.2007, 1♀, RRLS, leg. Mashipour, Habib zadeh & Hayader; Dashte Abbas, Seyed Falhi village , 32º24.105'N 47º36.922'E, 115 m a.s.l. (Locality No. IL-829), 2008, 1♂, RRLS, leg. Navidpour, Hayader & Bahrani ; Ein Saleh Village , 32°25.24'N 47°43.68'E, 182 m a.s.l. (Locality No. IL-828), X.2007, 1♂ 2♀, RRLS, leg. Masihipour, Bahrani & Hayader. Khoozestan Province, Chogha Zanbil (zikkurat) env., ca 100 m a.s.l., 5–6 May 1996, 1♀, FKCP, leg. M. Kaftan , 3♂ 1♀ 1juv., FKCP, leg. D. Král ; Baghmalek district, Hore Village, 31°55'30"N 49°31'47"E, 185 m a.s.l. (Locality No. B 1 and B2), I. 2007, 250 specimens, RRLS, 3♂ 1♀ ( Locality No. B3), FKCP, February 2007, 128 specimens, RRLS, 2♀, FKCP, leg. Kazemi ; 28°40'71"N 51°24'04"E, 16 m a.s.l. (Locality. No. B6), July 2007, 14 specimens, RRLS, 2♂ 1♀, FKCP, leg. Navidpour and Masihipour; Shahyoon (Dezful), 32°10'92"N 48°15'64"E, 75 m a.s.l. ( Locality No. SHO-814), October 2007, 1♀, RRLS, leg. Hayader & Habibzadeh ; Ahvaz–Masjedsoleyman road, 31°48'13"N 48°58'11"E, 38 m a.s.l. (Locality No. A-Ma- 808), September 2007, 125 specimens, RRLS, leg. Bahrani & Masihipour ; Chogha Zanbil (zikkurat), 32°00'92"N 48°31'10"E, 68 m a.s.l. (Locality No. Ch- 100), June 2007, 29 specimens, RRLS, 4♂, FKCP, leg. Navidpour & Masihipour; Chogha Zanbil (zikkurat), 32°00'92"N 48°31'10"E, 68.5 m a.s.l. (Locality No. Ch- 103), June 2007, 2♂ 1♀, FKCP, leg. Navidpour & Masihipour ; Ahvaz–Masjedsoleyman road, 31°46'51"N 49°06'01"E, 48 m a.s.l. (Locality No. A-Ma-811), September 2007, 61 specimens, RRLS, leg. Navidpour & Masihipour ; Ahvaz–Masjedsoleyman road, 31°49' 57"N 49°04'82"E, 53 m a.s.l. (Locality No. A-Ma-816- 1), October 2007, 1♂ 1♀ 6juvs, RRLS, leg. Masihipour & Hayader; 45 km NW of Masdjedsoleyman, Lali, 3 2°18'56"N 49°03'64"E, 329 m a.s.l. ( Locality No. La- 815-4 and 5), October 2007, 197♂ 201♀ 2juvs., RRLS, 2♀ 1im., FKCP, leg. Masihipour & Hayader. Kohgilouyeh & Boyer Ahmad Province, Zagros Mts., Kuh-e- Dinar ridge, 10 km NE of Yasuj, by road ( Baba Hasan Village env.), 1800–2500 m a.s.l, 1–2 May 1996, 1♀ 1juv., FKCP, leg. J. Pitulová; Behbahan to Gachsaran ( Dogonbadan ) road, 30º28'36"N 50º30'05", 498 m a.s.l. (Locality No. Y-1), March 2008, 6♂ 1♀, RRLS, 2ims., FKCP, leg. Ghafarnia & Habibzadeh ; Yasuj, Deelaroo Village , 30º33'44"N 50º44'44"E, 820 m a.s.l. (Locality No. Y-2), March 2008, 6♂ 12♀, RRLS, 1♂ 1♀ 2ims. (♂ ♀), FKCP, leg. Navidpour, Ghafarnia & Bahrani ; Dena, Yasuj to Sisakht road, 30º48'15"N 51º28'54"E, 2000 m a.s.l. (Locality No. Y-3), March 2008, 3♀, RRLS, 1♂ 2ims., FKCP, leg. Ghafarnia, Habibzadeh & Bahrani ; Yasuj to Mourgah road, Jahanno Village , 30°29'20"N 51°31'38"E, 2153 m a.s.l. (Locality No. Y- 4), March 2008, 3♂ 2♀, RRLS, leg. Navidpour, Ghafarnia & Bahrani ; Basht road, Dehno Village , 30º17'41"N 51º25'08"E, 826 m a.s.l. (Locality No. Y-5), March 2008, 1♂, RRLS, leg. Navidpour, Ghafarnia & Bahrani ; Basht to Dehdasht road, Shah Baharan Village , 30º36'51"N 50º50'46"E, 886 m a.s.l. (Locality No. Y-7) X.2007, 4♂ 1♀, RRLS, leg. Gafarnia, Hayder & Habibzadeh ; Cheram , 30º44'23"N 50º44'35"E, 747 m a.s.l. (Locality No. Y-8), March 2008, 1♂ 2♀, RRLS, leg. Ghafarnia, Bahrani & Habibzadeh ; Dehdasht to Behbahan road, Filegah Village , 30º31'21"N 50º24'51"E, 770 m a.s.l. (Locality No. Y-9), March 2008, 3♀, RRLS, leg. Ghafarnia, Hayader & Bahrani. Iraq, Baghdad env., 1929–1932, 17♂ 44♀ 88juvs., NMPC, 3♂ 2♀ 5juvs., FKCP, leg. Vlasta Kálalová. Syria, Damascus, 3♀, FKCP, June 1963, leg. Havlín. TURKEY, Adıyaman

Mesobuthus eupeus eupeus ( C. L. and ventral views, ♂ (50 mm), Pertek District, 1 km SW of 15.0"N 39°23'46.8"E, 1330 m a.s.l. 7. Dorsal and ventral views, ♀ (46, Pertek District , 1 km SW of 15.0"N 39°23'46.8"E, 1330 m a.s.l. 9. Dorsal and ventral views, ♂ (51, Aralık District, Yenidoğan 36"E, 1563 m a.s.l. (locality No. and ventral views, ♀ (55 mm), ık District , Yenidoğan Village , m a.s.l. (locality No. 17), FKCP . phillipsii (Pocock, 1889) . 12–13. ♂ (45 mm), Turkey, Şanlıurfa, Çiçekalan Village , 36°56.74'N locality No. 34), FKCP . 14-15. ♀ (50 mm), Turkey, Şanlıurfa, Çiçekalan Village , 36°56.74'N locality No. 34), FKCP .

Province, Besni District, 1 km S of Çakırhöyük Village fork in road, 37°33′09″N 37°45′12″E, 724 m a.s.l., No. 1, 7 July 2006, 3♂, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & S. Anlaş ; Besni District, from Adıyaman to Kahramanmaraş 25th km, 37°42'28"N 38°00'06"E, 730 m a.s.l., No. 2, 15 May 2004, 2♂ 4♀ 2juvs., MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & A. Akkaya ; Besni District, Üçgöz Village , 3 km NW, 37°39'38"N 37°56'28"E, 763 m a.s.l., No. 3, 8.VII.2006, 3♂, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & S. Anlaş ; Central District, 1 km W of Aydınoluk Village fork in road, 37°46′08″E 38°20′54″N, No. 4, 4 May 2004, 3♂ 1♀, MTAS, leg. A. Avcı ; Gerger District, Açma Village , 2 km NE, 37°59'35"N 38°57'51"E, 595 m a.s.l., No. 5, 19 April 2008, 1♂ 1juv., MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & E. Tezcan ; Samsat District, 37°41.670'N 38°32.581'E, 600 m a.s.l., No. 6, 27 May 2006, 1juv., MTAS, leg. A. Avcı ; Diyarbakır Province, Çınar District, Aşağı Konak Village, Ayşebacı Hill , 37°37' 35"N 40°29'35"E, 760 m a.s.l., No. 7, 16 August 2007, 1♂, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur ; Ergani District, Salihli Village Fork In Road , 1 km NE, 38°13'38"N 39°40'07"E, 902 m a.s.l., No. 8, 12 April 2008, 1juv., MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur, G. Çalışır & M. Özkörük ; Ergani District, Tevekli Village, 38°11'54"N 39°51' 37"E, 823 m a.s.l., No. 9, 16 June 2007, 1♂ 1♂ im. 1♀1♀ im., MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Yalçın ; Çermik District, Petekkaya Village , 6 km SW, 38°03'06"N 39°24'17"E, 722 m a.s.l., No. 10, 11 April 2008, 2♀ 1juv., MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur, G. Çalışır & M. Özkörük ; Çermik District, Başarı Village , 1 km NW, 38°06'36"N 39°31'05"E, 966 m a.s.l., No. 11, 12 April 2008, 1♀ 1juv., MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur, G. Çalışır & M. Özkörük ; Gaziantep Province, Araban District, Başpınar Village , 2 km NE, 37°27'59"N 37°52'33"E, 675 m a.s.l., No. 12, 30 April 2005, 1♂, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Özkörük ; Araban District, Gümüşpınar Village , 1 km S, 37°25'58"N 37°53'28"E, No. 13, 30 April 2005, 1♂ 4♀, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Özkörük ; Nizip District, Altındağ Village , 37°05'14"N 37°42'07"E, 667 m a.s.l., No. 14, 19 October 2002, 2♂ 5♀ 5juvs., MTAS, leg. C. Toprak & S. Kesmezoğlu ; Nizip District, Keklik Village , 2 km SW, 37°04'21"N 37°48'07"E, 579 m a.s.l., No. 15, 30 May 2003, 1♀, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & C. Toprak ; Nizip District, Kıratlı Village , 2 km NE, 37°05'34"N 37°45'10"E, 656 m a.s.l., No. 16, 10 October 2004, 2juvs., MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Özkörük ; Şahinbey District, Belenköy Village , 1 km E, 37°03'15"N 37°05'31"E, 954 m a.s.l., No. 17, 5 May 2006, 3♂ 4♀, MTAS, leg. M. Yalçın ; Şehitkamil District, Akçaburç Village, 2 km SW, 37°14'09"N 37°18'47"E, 834 m a.s.l., No. 18, 7 May 2005, 3♂ 1♀ 1juv., MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Yalçın ; Şehitkamil District, 11th km from Gaziantep to Yavuzeli , 37°11'43"N 37°27'27"E, 865 m a.s.l., No. 19, 9 October 2004, 2♀, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & C. Toprak ; Şehitkamil District, Güngürge Village , 1 km N, 37°13'35"N 37°28'57"E, 803 m a.s.l., No. 20, 9 October 2004, 1♀, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Özkörük ; Şehitkamil District, İncesu Village , 1 km E, 37°13′16″N 37°18′05″E, 942 m a.s.l., No. 21, 7 May 2005, 2♂ 2♀, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Yalçın ; Şehitkamil District, Övündük Village , 2 km West, 37°12'53"N 37°24'57"E, 778 m a.s.l., No. 22, 8 June 2002, 1♂, MTAS, leg. C. Toprak & S. Kesmezoğlu ; Şehitkamil District, Yeşilce Village , 37°10'12"N 37°12'50"E, 982 m a.s.l., No. 23, 10 May 2004, 1♀, MTAS, leg. A. Akkaya ; Yavuzeli District, Örenli Village , 1 km E, 37°15'11"N 37°30'45"E, 726 m a.s.l., No. 24, 9 October 2004, 1♂ 1♀ 3 juvs., MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & C. Toprak ; Yavuzeli District, Süleymanobası Village , 37°14'56"N 37°33'14"E, 837 m a.s.l., No. 25, 9 October 2004, 1juv., MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & C. Toprak ; Kahramanmaraş Province, Pazarcık District, 0.5 km N of Hörük Village fork in road, 37°30′10″N 37°33′46″E, 795 m a.s.l., No. 26, 24 June 2007, 2♂ 1♀, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Yalçın ; Pazarcık District, 10 km NE of Pazarcık Town , 37°32'47"N 37°27'16"E, 942 m a.s.l., No. 27, 9 July 2006, 2♂, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & S. Anlaş ; Pazarcık District, Karabıyıklı Village , 4 km N, 37°19'33"N 37°09'40"E, 743 m a.s.l., No. 28, 18 June 2006, 1♂ 1♀, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Yalçın ; Kilis Province, Elbeyli District, Çangallı Village , 36°42'52"N 37°33'14"E, 615 m a.s.l., No. 29, 20 April 2006, 3♂ 1♀, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Özkörük ; Mardin Province, Central District, Eskikale Village , 2 km E, 37°18'23"N 40°46'28"E, 944 m a.s.l., No. 3, 4 August 2006, 2♂ 2♀ 3juvs., MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Yalçın ; Central District, Yolbaşı Village ,

Carapace and mesosomal tergite I. VI and VII. 23–26. Metasomal and 19. Mesobuthus eupeus eupeus mm), Georgia, Tbilisi, FKCP. 17 phillipsii (Pocock, 1889) , ♂ (45 Province, Birecik District, Çiçekalan 'E, 410 m a.s.l. (locality No. 34), eupeus phillipsii (Pocock, 1889) , ♂ Province, Khormuj, 28°41'46"N Locality No. Bu-31), FKCP. 20. (C. L. Koch, 1839), ♀ (48 mm),, Siverek District, Karacadağ center, 37°44' 45"N 39°49'50"E,), FKCP. 22. Mesobuthus eupeus ♀ (46 mm), Turkey, Şanlıurfa, Çiçekalan Village, 36°56.74'N (locality No. 34), FKCP. 23. (C. L. Koch, 1839), ♀ (55 mm), ık District, Yenidoğan Village, 1563 m a.s.l., (locality No. 17), eupeus phillipsii (Pocock, 1889) , ♀ Province, Genaveh, 29°13'42"N FKCP. 25. Mesobuthus eupeus ♀ (50 mm), Turkey, Şehitkamil 1 km N, 37°13'35"N 37°28'57"E,), MTAS. 26. Mesobuthus eupeus ♀ (50 mm), Turkey, Şehitkamil Gaziantep to Yavuzeli, 37°11'43"N locality No. 19), MTAS.

37°16'00"N 40°48'00"E, 658 m a.s.l., No. 31, 27 June 2007, 4♂ 3♀ 1juv., MTAS, leg. H. Koç & A. V. Gromov; Yeşilli District, 2 km N of Yeşilli Town , 37º20'49''N 40º49'35''E, 946 m a.s.l., No. 32, 13 May 2004, 1♂ 1♀, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & A. Akkaya; Şanlıurfa Province, Akçakale District, Edebey Village , 36°50′ 40″N 38°40′57″E, 532 m a.s.l., No. 33, 22 May 2007, 5♂ 4♀ 2juvs., MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur, H. Koç & A. V. Gromov; Birecik District, Çiçekalan Village , 36°56.74'N 38°01.37'E, 410 m a.s.l., No. 34, 1 April 2008, 1♂1♂ im. 3♀ FKCP, leg. M. Z. Yıldız; Birecik District, Kelaynak Valley , 2 km N of Birecik Town , 37°02'59"N 37°59'07"E, 388 m a.s.l., No. 35, 1 April 2006, 1♀, FKCP, 2♀ 1im.m MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Özkörük; Birecik District, Mezra Village , 2 km S , 36°56'49"N 38°01'21"E, 375 m a.s.l., No. 36, 2 April 2006, 2juvs., MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Yalçın; Birecik District, Yukarı Habib Village , 2 km N , 37°08'51"N 37°59'57"E, 660 m a.s.l., No. 37, 1 April 2006, 1♀ 2juvs., MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Özkörük; Central District, 10 km W of Şanlıurfa Town , 37°07'21"N 38°40'41"E, 724 m a.s.l., No. 38, 11 May 2004, 1♀, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & A. Akkaya; Central District, Asri Village , 2 km SE , 37°04'36"N 39°13'30"E, 561 m a.s.l., No. 39, 9 May 2006, 1♂ 1♀, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Z. Yıldız; Central District, 50th km from Şanlıurfa to Viranşehir , 37°13'27"N 39°24'06"E, 653 m a.s.l., No. 40, 12 May 2004, 1♂ 1♀, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & T. Akkaya; Ceylanpınar District, Evren Paşa Village , 36°52'15"N 40°02'30"E, 391 m a.s.l., No. 41, 5 March 200 6, 2♂ 5♀ 1juv., MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur, M. Özkörük; Ceylanpınar District, Evren Paşa Village, Emintaş Area , 36°52'15"N 40°02'30"E, 391 m a.s.l., No. 42, 1 April 2006, 1♂ 3♀, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Özkörük; Halfeti District, Kalkan Village , 36°50′40″N 38° 4 0′ 57″E, 532 m a.s.l., No. 43, 10 April 2006, 1♂ 3♀, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Özkörük; Halfeti District, Yeşilözen Village , 2 km S , 37°11'05"N 37° 5 8' 32"E, 669 m a.s.l., No. 44, 1 April 2006, 1♀, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Özkörük; Harran District, Şuayipşehir Village , 2 km N , 36°52′36″N 39°22′18″E, 506 m a.s.l., No. 45, 6 May 2006, 1♀, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Z. Yıldız; Hilvan District, Kırbaşı Village , 37°30'03"N 38°53'17"E, 678 m a.s.l., No. 46, 10 May 2006, 1♀, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Z. Yıldız; Suruç District, Yağışlı Village , 2 km S , 37°00'35"N 38°16'27"E, 606 m a.s.l., No. 47, 11 April 2006, 1♀, MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Özkörük; Viranşehir District, Kocanizam Village , 37°11'48"N 39° 29'29"E, 619 m a.s.l., No. 48, 8 May 2007, 1♀ 1juv., MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Z. Yıldız; Şırnak Province, Dicle District, Yalıntepe Village , 37°17'16"N 42°03'15"E, 599 m a.s.l., No. 49, 12 May 200 7, 19♂ 11♀ 33juvs., MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur & M. Yalçın, H.Koç & E. Ulupınar; İdil District, Yörük Village , 37°16'57"N 42°01'07"E, 669 m a.s.l., No. 50, 21 September 2006, 2♀, MTAS, 21 May 2009, 1♂ 1♀, FKCP, 2♂ 4♀ MTAS, leg. E. A. Yağmur.

Diagnosis. Total length 35 to 55 (rarely 60) mm. Dorsal trichobothria of femur arranged in beta - configuration. Trichobothrium eb located on fixed finger of chela. Trichobothrium db on pedipalp fixed finger always located between est and esb. Color pattern usually lighter-colored. Pectines with fulcra. Legs III and IV with tibial spurs. Tarsomeres of legs I and II with paired ventral spines. Cheliceral fixed finger with two ventral denticles. Movable fingers of pedipalps with 10 to 12 (very rarely 13) diagonal rows of denticles. Rows of denticles with one internal and two posterior external granules. Dentate margin of pedipalp chela movable finger with 5 terminal denticles (4 terminal and one basal terminal). Metasomal segment I with ten, and metasomal segment IV, with eight carinae. Carapace in lateral view with entire dorsal surface horizontal or nearly so (possibly with a slight anterior decline). Central lateral and posterior lateral carinae of carapace not joined to form a continuous linear series of granules to posterior margin. Carinae of carapace forming a lyreshaped configuration. Mesosomal tergites I–VI with three carinae. Carinae of tergites do not project beyond posterior margin as distinct spiniform processes. Mesosomal tergites VI and VII smooth or weakly granulated. All metasomal segment similar in width. Ventral carinae of metasomal segments without very strong teeth. Metasomal segment V with a single ventral carina. Ventrolateral carinae on the metasomal segment V with irregular granules. Telson bulbous, especially in female.

Distribution: Iran: Bushehr Province (Pocock, 1889a: 341), Ilam Province (Akbari, 2007: 76), Khoozestan Province ( Navidpour et al., 2008a: 9), Kohgilouyeh & Boyer Ahmad ( Kovařík, 1997), and Chahar Machal & Bakhtiyari Province (Pirali-Kheirabadi et al., 2009: 6); Iraq (Penther, 1912: 111); Syria (first report); Turkey (first report).

Comments: Penther (1912: 111), describing Buthus eupaeus mesopotamicus , had meager material and thus could not see the amount of variation present in different populations. He counted 24–27 pectinal teeth in males and 17–20 in females, whereas in M. eupeus phillipsii (as Buthus phillipsii ) he found 27–30 pectinal teeth in males and 23–26 in females. In reality, males of M. eupeus phillipsii from Iran (Bushehr Province) have 21– 29 pectinal teeth and females have 18–27. We were able to compare numerous specimens of M. eupeus phillipsii collected in Iran by the team under Shahrokh Navidpour with 159 specimens of M. eupeus mesopotamicus collected by Vlasta Kálalová, and can unequivocally state that Buthus eupaeus mesopotamicus Penther, 1912 is a synonym of M. phillipsii (Pocock, 1889) . Similarity of these two taxa was indicated also by Birula (1917: 51). Later, Birula (1918) provided a detailed comparison of M. eupeus mesopotamicus with the nominotypical subspecies, and, in addition to telson shape, discussed minor variation of carination and sculpture on metasoma and pedipalps; however, our analysis did not reveal consistent pattern in these characters. On the other hand, Birula (1918), in his last paper involving Mesobuthus of Middle East, distinguished M. eupeus mesopotamicus from M. eupeus phillipsii only by minor differences in carapace and mesosomal tergite carination and sculpture, and did not study any material from Turkey that was available to us.

Variation

Two subspecies, M. eupeus eupeus and M. eupeus phillipsii , form numerous populations living in variable local conditions (temperature, humidity, elevation), which exhibit substantial phenotypic variation specifically in adult specimen size, coloration, and the degree of development of sexual dimorphism.

Size. In the Turkish population of M. eupeus eupeus from Yörük Village (37°16'57"N 42°01'07"E) males are 35–40 mm long, whereas at the Karacadağ Mountain (37°44' 45"N 39°49'50"E) males are 48–60 mm long. Examined females from both populations are 52–55 mm long.

Coloration. Especially forest populations of M. eupeus eupeus have much darker color patterns. This can be seen in all Georgian and Armenian populations studied, and it is often regarded as characteristic for the nominotypical subspecies. However, some Turkish populations are much lighter-colored, including those within the postulated distributional limits of M. eupeus eupeus .

Sexual dimorphism. The degree of its development concerns primarily the shape of the chela and fingers in males and of the telson in females. Surprisingly, it does not show a correlation to specimen size; for instance, small males of both subspecies may have abnormally wide chela and a conspicuous internal lobe on the fingers. Equally complex is this relationship in females of M. eupeus phillipsii , where some 55 mm long specimens from Iran (Busher Province) have the telson extremely inflated whereas others of the same size have the telson relatively slender and therefore can be confused with M. eupeus eupeus .

Biogeography and Systematics

Our map ( Figure 27 ) shows the allopatric geographic distribution of two subspecies in Turkey. We see that their ranges come close to each other in southeastern Turkey. The northern subspecies Mesobuthus eupeus eupeus is most common in the northeastern mountainous areas of the Caucasus; it also penetrates west into Anatolia as far as Konya Province, to the longitude 3 3°38'E. At the same time, the southern subspecies M. eupeus phillipsii occupies in Turkey a compact range in the arid regions of the southeast (Adıyaman, Diyarbakır, Gaziantep, Kahramanmaraş, Mardin, Şanlıurfa Provinces), reaching north over 37°N (in Adıyaman Province). This area is within the East Anatolian Region as defined by Crucitti & Cicuzza (2001). The allopatry follows the same biogeographic boundaries that have been recently outlined for another scorpion genus, Calchas Birula, 1899 (Fet et al. 2009).

The Southeast Anatolia Region is separated by Eastern Taurus mountains from the rest of Turkey. Certain scorpion species are found only in this area, e.g. Calchas birulai and Leiurus abdullahbayrami . Other, xerophilic scorpions are limited in their distribution by this area, e.g. Androctonus crassicauda , Compsobuthus matthiesseni (see Yağmur et al., 2008a, 2008b), and also Mesobuthus eupeus phillipsii , and do not penetrate further to the Mediterranean Region. On the other hand, Mesobuthus eupeus eupeus is limited from the north by the Black Sea Region and the eastern Black Sea mountains. This region is very humid and rainy, and its scorpionfauna includes only Euscorpius species.

We use the term ”subspecies” here with a reservation; it is highly possible that two discussed taxa represent separate “sibling” species. The taxonomic status of many M. eupeus subspecies is currently under investigation. This overly polymorphic species (which is, likely, a species complex) possibly will be separated into a number of species. First such indication has been provided by Gantenbein, Fet & Gromov (2003) who used 16S rRNA mitochondrial DNA markers to compare several populations of M. eupeus from Turkey to China.

In their most recent, detailed study of M. eupeus from Iran, using standard “barcoding” DNA markers (COI), Mirshamsi et al. (2010) detected two lineages: a northern clade, which included four subspecies identifies in their analysis (M. e. eupeus , M. e. philippovitschi, M. e. afghanus and M. e. thersites), and the southern clade with two subspecies (M. e. phillipsii and M. e. kirmanensis). Our current finding of two subspecies of M. eupeus in Turkey complements this comprehensive analysis. Further detailed analysis of both DNA and morphology, with intensive search of new characters, is needed across the range of the entire species (or species complex) Mesobuthus eupeus .

Figures

Figure 27: Distribution of Mesobuthus eupeus eupeus (C. L. Koch, 1839) and M. eupeus phillipsii (Pocock, 1889) in Turkey. Red squares, localities of M. e. eupeus; green circles, localities of M. e. phillipsii. See Material Examined for numbers of localities.