Compsobuthus krali Kovařík, 2012

Kovařík, František, 2012, Three new species of Compsobuthus Vachon, 1949 from Yemen, Jordan, Israel, and Somaliland (Scorpiones: Buthidae), Euscorpius 150, pp. 1-10 : 3-5

Compsobuthus krali Kovařík , sp. n.

( Figs. 1–7)

TYPE LOCALITY AND TYPE REPOSITORY. Yemen, Ta’izz Governorate, Wadi Bani Khawlan, NNW Ash Shuqayrah by road, 13°19'57"N 43°43'19"E, 467 m a.s.l.; author’s collection ( FKCP).

TYPE MATERIAL. Yemen, Ta’izz Governorate, Wadi Bani Khawlan, NNW Ash Shuqayrah by road, 13°19'57"N 43°43'19"E, 467 m a.s.l., 27.–28.X.2007, 1♂ (holotype), leg. David Král.

ETYMOLOGY. Named after the Czech coleopterist and my friend David Král, who collected the holotype.

DIAGNOSIS. Total length of male holotype 25 mm. Carapace, mesosoma, metasoma, telson, and pedipalp femur and patella of adults densely granulated. Movable finger of pedipalp bears 11 rows of granules, with external and internal granules ( werneri group). Male has fingers of pedipalps proximally flexed and chela robust; female unknown. First to third metasomal segments bear 10 carinae; fourth metasomal segment bears 8 carinae. All metasomal segments sparsely setose and densely granulated. First metasomal segment of male wider than long. Fifth metasomal segment length/width ratio in male less than 2. Pectinal teeth number 21–22. Seventh sternite bears 4 well developed carinae. Telson with aculeus little shorter than vesicle. Subaculear tubercle present.

DESCRIPTION. The male holotype is 25 mm long. The habitus is shown in Figs. 1–2. For position and distribution of trichobothria of pedipalps see Figs. 4–7. Adult male has fingers of pedipalps proximally flexed and chela robust.

COLORATION. The base color is uniformly yellow to redish brown, with dark spots. Carapace, mesosoma and fifth metasomal segments are dark.

CARAPACE AND MESOSOMA. The entire carapace is covered by large granules. The carinae are moderately to strongly developed and granular. The anterior margin of the carapace is straight, medially weakly concave, and bears six short, symmetrically distributed macrosetae. Tergites are granulated. Tergites I–VI bear very strong, denticulate lateral carinae. Each carina terminates in a spiniform process that extends well past the posterior margin of the tergite. Tergite VII is pentacarinate, with lateral pairs strong, serratocrenulate and the median carina moderate, crenulate and present only in the proximal half. The pectinal tooth count in the male holotype is 21–22. The pectinal marginal tips extend to midlength of the fourth sternite. The pectines have three marginal lamellae and six middle lamellae. The lamellae bear numerous dark setae, each fulcrum with two dark setae. All sternites are sparsely to densely granulated, but the granules are smaller than on the tergites. The sixth and seventh segments bear four ventral crenulate carinae, which are more strongly developed on the seventh segment. The other sternites bear two carinae. The carinae span two posterior thirds of the sternites and in no case reach the anterior margin.

METASOMA AND TELSON. The first to third segments bear 10 carinae; the fourth metasomal segment bears eight carinae and the fifth segment bears five carinae. All segments are very sparsely setose and densely granulated. The telson is elongate, with the aculeus little shorter than vesicle. A subaculear tubercle is present. The ventral surface of the telson is sparsely granulated.

PEDIPALPS. The pedipalps are granulated. The femur bears five carinae. The patella bears seven granular carinae. The chela bears five carinae. The movable finger bears 11 rows of granules, with external and internal granules. The fixed finger bears 10 rows of granules, with external and internal granules. The male has fingers of pedipalps proximally flexed and chela robust; the female is unknown.

LEGS. The legs III and IV bear tibial spurs. Retrolateral and prolateral pedal spurs are present on all legs. The prolateral pedal spurs are basally bifurcate. The tarsomeres bear two rows of short macrosetae on the ventral surface and numerous macrosetae on the other surfaces. Bristlecombs are absent. The femur bears four carinae and the patella bears four to six carinae. The femur and patella bear only solitary macrosetae and are densely granulated except for external lateral surfaces which are smooth.

MEASUREMENTS IN MM. Total length of male holotype 25; carapace length 3.0, width 3.2; metasoma and telson length 15.2; first metasomal segment length 1.8, width 2.1; second metasomal segment length 2.3, width 2.0; third metasomal segment length 2.5, width 2.0; fourth metasomal segment length 2.6, width 1.9; fifth metasomal segment length 3.3, width 1.7; telson length 2.7; pedipalp femur length 2.4, width 0.7; pedipalp patella length 3.1, width 1.3; chela length 4.8; manus width 1.4; movable finger length 3.1.

AFFINITIES. The described features distinguish C. krali sp. n. from all other species of the genus. They are recounted in the key. In the werneri group from the Arabian Peninsula only C. krali sp. n. from Yemen and C. birulai Lourenço, Leguin et Duhem, 2010 from United Arab Emirates have the first metasomal segment of male wider than long. However, C. birulai has the movable finger of pedipalp with nine rows of granules, total length 31–41 mm, and subaculear tubercle absent. C. krali sp. n. has the movable finger of pedipalp with 11 rows of granules, total length 25 mm, and subaculear tubercle present.