Euscorpius gamma

Euscorpius gamma is a species of scorpion found in parts of Central and Southern Europe. Its body reaches the lentgh of 32 mm and is darkly pigmented, but is largely indistinguishable from closely related species with which it forms the »Euscorpius mingrelicus complex«. The animal is not considered aggressive and has mild venom, so it is not dangerous to humans.[1]

Euscorpius gamma
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Subphylum:	Chelicerata
Class:	Arachnida
Subclass:	Dromopoda
Order:	Scorpiones
Family:	Euscorpiidae
Subfamily:	Euscorpiinae
Genus:	Euscorpius
Species:	E. gamma
Binomial name
Euscorpius gamma Di Caporiacco, 1950
Synonyms
Euscorpius germanus gamma Caporiacco, 1950 Euscorpius mingrelicus caprai Bonacina, 1980

Its known range includes Austria, Italy, Slovenia and Croatia,[1] being commonly distributed in Slovenia.[2] The species is also common in the Austrian part of the Kamnik–Savinja Alps and Karawanks in Carinthia, with the river Drava forming the northern border of distribution.[3]

E. gamma inhabits humid habitats where it rests in crevices under tree bark, beneath rocks etc.[1]

Taxonomy

The taxon was originally described as a subspecies of Euscorpius germanus,[4] based on samples collected in southwest Slovenia and eastern Italy.[5]

At that time, Euscorpius germanus was thought to be distributed across large part of Europe, from Italy to Caucasus. However, a subsequent taxonomical revision split E. gamma's then parent species Euscorpius mingrelicus fom E. germanus. The taxonomic status continued to be complicated due to frequent misidentification – the species can only be distinguished by microscopic morphological characters such as the distribution of sensory hairs on pedipalps, with the difference being apparent only after statistical analysis.[5]

Then, in 2000, taxonomists proved that specimens of Euscorpius germanus gamma can be clearly distinguished from related populations by molecular characters, so the subspecies was elevated to the species rank. A female collected near the mouth of Rižana river in Slovene Istria and kept in the collection of La Specola museum (Florence, Italy) was named type specimen.[5]

References

1. Rein, Jan Ove (2000). "Euscorpius gamma". The Scorpion Files. Norges teknisk-naturvitenskapelige universitet. Retrieved 2020-06-09.
2. Sket, Boris; Gogala, Matija; Kuštor, Valika, eds. (2003). Živalstvo Slovenije. Ljubljana: Tehniška založba Slovenije. ISBN 86-365-0410-4.
3. Komposch, Christian; Scheraborn, Bernhard; Fet, Victor (2001). "Scorpions of Austria". In Fet, Victor; Selden, Paul A. (eds.). Scorpions 2001. British Arachnological Society. pp. 267–271. ISBN 0-9500093-3-4.
4. "Euscorpius (Alpiscorpius) gamma Di Caporiacco 1950". Fauna Europaea. Retrieved 2013-04-27.
5. Scherabon, B.; Gantenbein, B.; Fet, V.; Barker, M.; Kuntner, M.; Kropf, C.; Huber, D. (2000). "A new species of scorpion from Austria, Italy, Slovenia and Croatia: Euscorpius gamma Caporiacco, 1950, stat. nov. (Scorpiones: Euscorpiidae)" (PDF). Ekologia (Bratislava). 19 (Suppl. 3): 253–262.