Euscorpiops xui, Sun, Dong & Zhu, Ming-Sheng, 2010

Sun, Dong & Zhu, Ming-Sheng, 2010, One new species of scorpion belonging to the genus Euscorpiops Vachon, 1980 from Yunan, China (Scorpiones: Euscorpiidae, Scorpiopinae), Zootaxa 2399, pp. 61-68 : 62-67

Euscorpiops xui sp. nov.

(Figs. 1–14)

Type material. Holotype female, CHINA: Yunnan Province, Menglian County, Lafu Village, 22°08΄N, 99°25΄E, 15 July 2009, Dr. Ji-Shan Xu leg.; 1 female, 1 male and 1 juvenile male paratypes, all the same as for holotype. (All are deposited in MHBU)

The female is designated here as holotyope because the only mature male specimen is badly preserved.

Diagnosis. Adult females 62.5–64.7 mm long, and adult male 54.1 mm long; dark brownish-red; pectinal teeth 7– 7 in females and 8– 8 in males; cheliceral movable finger with 6–7 basal teeth on ventral edge; chela, length to width ratio more than 3.5 in females and more than 4.1 in males; dentate margin with a slight lobe on movable finger and corresponding notch on fixed finger in both males and females, with no marked sexual dimorphism; patella with 19 external trichobothria (6 eb, 2 esb, 2 em, 4 est, 5 et), and with 10 ventral trichobothria. According to Qi, Zhu & Lourenço (2005), Bastawade (2006) and Zhu, Zhang & Lourenço (2007), and especially the key of Kovařík (2005) for the genus Euscorpiops , the new species is undoubtedly associated with Euscorpiops kubani Kovařík, 2004 , mainly based on the numbers of trichobothria on the external and ventral surfaces of pedipalp patella. However, it can be distinguished from E.kubani by the TABLE I. Morphometric values (in mm) of the female holotype and male paratype of Euscorpiops xui sp. nov., and the male holotype and female paratype of Euscorpiops kubani Kovaȓík, 2004 . (All morphometric values of Euscorpiops

kubani Kovaȓík, 2004 cited from Kovaȓík (2004), “-” means lacks of corresponding values in that paper.) Euscorpiops xui sp. nov. Euscorpiops kubani Kovaȓík, 2004 ♀ (holotype) ♂ (paratype) ♀ (paratype) ♂ (holotype) FIGURES. 1–8. 1–4, 6–8. Euscorpiops xui sp. nov. Female holotype. 5. Euscorpiops xui sp. nov. Male paratype. 1. Carapace, dorsal aspect. 2, 3. Chelicera (2. ventral, 3. dorsal). 4, 5. Genital operculum and pectines, ventral aspect. 6, 7. Patella (6. ventral, 7. external). 8. Telson, lateral aspect. Scale bar = 1.0mm.

FIGURES. 9–13. 9, 10, 13. Euscorpiops xui sp. nov. Female holotype. 11, 12. Euscorpiops xui sp. nov. Male paratype. 9–12. Chela (9, 11. external, 10, 12. ventral). 13. Disposition of granulations on the dentate margins of the pedipalp chela movable finger, dorsal aspect. Scale bar = 1.0mm.

following features: (1) a much bigger overall size and distinct morphometric values (see Table I); (2) a greater chela length to width ratio, more than 3.5 in females and more than 4.1 in males whereas it is about 3.2 in females and 3.1 in males in E. kubani ; (3) no marked sexual dimorphism on pedipalp fingers in the new species (see figs. 9–12), while there is distinct sexual dimorphism in the shape of pedipalp fingers, scalloped in male and nearly straight in female in E. kubani (see fig. 2, Kovařík, 2004).

Etymology. The specific name is a patronym in honor of Dr. Ji-Shan Xu, Dali College, Yunnan, China, who collected the type materials.

Description. Based on female holotype and male paratype.

Coloration. dark brownish-red; tergites brownish-red, slightly lighter than carapace; sternites light brownish-red, genital operculum and pectines light brownish-yellow, pectinal tooth light yellow; chelicerae brownish-red, with variegated black pigment; patella and tibia of legs with variegated black pigment, tarsus and tarsal ungues light brownish-red; aculeus light brownish-red, and dark brownish-red on its extremity.

Morphology. Prosoma: anterior margin smooth, with a “U” shape median notch; surface of carapace densely granular, and smooth on the lateral areas of median eyes and in furrows; carinae weak to obsolete, furrows moderately developed. Median ocular tubercle apart from anterior and posterior margins in the ratio about 1:1.7; median eyes separated by almost 1.25 ocular diameters; three pairs of lateral eyes.

Mesosoma: tergites without carina and with dense granules; sternites smooth; pectinal teeth moderately long, 7–7 pectinal teeth in females and 8– 8 in males.

Metasoma: segment I wider than long, segments II–V longer than wide in females and segments I–II wider than long, segments III–V longer than wide in males; the surface of segments with dense fine granules; segments I to V respectively with 10–8–8–8 –7 granular carinae; dorsal carinae of segments II to IV terminated distally by a small spinoid teeth; ventral carina of segment V not bifurcating posteriorly. Telson smooth, vesicle long ellipsoidal; junction between vesicle and aculeus with a marked annular ring; vesicle length to aculeus ratio 2.2~2.3:1.

Chelicerae: Cheliceral movable finger with 6–7 basal teeth on ventral edge.

Pedipalps: femur and patella flat, surfaces with dense granules; femur with six carinae and patella with five carinae, all carinae granular; ventrointernal surface of patella with a pair of spinoid teeth. Chela relatively long and slender (table I), the ratio of length to width over 3.5 in females and over 4.1 in males; surfaces of manus densely granular and with moderately granular carinae; fingers with no carina, dentate margin slightly scalloped in both males and females, with no marked sexual dimorphism (fig. 9–12); movable fingers with straight double rows of granules, with internal and external granules.

Legs: surfaces smooth; tarsus with a row of ventral setae, stout spiniform; without tibial spurs; pedal spurs present and moderately developed on all legs.

Trichobothrial pattern: neobothriotaxic C ( Vachon, 1974); patella with 19 external trichobothria (6 eb, 2 esb, 2 em, 4 est, 5 et), and with 10 ventral trichobothria.

Variation and sexual dimorphism: female and male differ by the following characters: (1) females are larger, with a size ranging from 62.5 to 64.7 mm, in the single mature male in collection is only 54.1 mm (table I); (2) the granules on the surface of chela in male are slightly larger and more scattered than in females (fig. 9–12); (3) number of pectinal teeth (table I).

Note: the male paratype with a distinct concrescence between two pieces of pectinal teeth on one pectine (See in fig. 5), but we count it as two separate pectinal teeth. Probably, this is a case of teratology.