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Family Vaejovidae
Genus Paravaejovis
Genus Paruroctonus
Genus Pseudouroctonus
Genus Serradigitus
Genus Smeringurus
Genus Syntropis
Genus Uroctonites
Genus Uroctonus
Genus Vaejovis
Genus Vejovoidus

Diversity
Endemism
Taxonomy
Phylogeny
Biogeography
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Genus Vaejovis C. L. Koch 1836

Synonymy
:
Vaejovis C. L.
Koch, 1836: 51; type species by monotypyVaejovis mexicanus C. L.
Koch, 1836.
SYNONYMS:
Parabroteas
Penther, 1913: 244-245, fig. 5; type species by monotypy Parabroteas montezuma Penther, 1913; a junior homonym of
Parabroteas Mrázek,
1902, (Crustacea) (synonymized by Soleglad, 1976b: 299).
Pentheria
Francke, 1985: 3, 11, 16, 19; type species Parabrotheas montezuma
Penther, 1913; a replacement name for Parabroteas Penther, 1913 (synonymized
by Sissom, 2000: 529; see Notes).
Lissovaejovis
Ponce Saavedra & Beutelspacher, 2001: 88, 98. Type species not designated. See
notes below.
Sissomius
Ponce Saavedra & Beutelspacher, 2001: 88, 99. Type species not designated. See
notes below.
REFERENCES:
Vejovis (ISS):
Thorell, 1876a: 10; Kraepelin, 1894: 182, 198; Laurie, 1896b: 187, 189, 193;
Lauire, 1896a: 130; Kraepelin, 1899: 183; Comstock, 1912: 31; Birula, 1917a:
163; Pavlovsky, 1924: 80; Hoffmann, 1931: 346; Werner, 1934: 282; Kästner, 1941:
273; Gertsch & Allred, 1965: 3-4 (part); Gertsch & Soleglad, 1966: 3-4 (part);
Bücherl, 1964: 61 (part); Bücherl, 1971: 328 (part); Gertsch & Soleglad, 1972:
553, 557, 559, 564, 593 (part); Soleglad, 1972b: 179-180 (part); Soleglad,
1973b: 351-360 (part); Stahnke, 1974a: 132-136, fig. 9C, 9D (part).
Vaejovis:
Pocock, 1902: 8; Ewing, 1928: 7, 9-10; Hjelle, 1972: 20 (part); Vachon, 1974:
914, 916; Williams, 1974: 15 (part); Williams, 1980: 48-55, fig. 51-57 (part);
Sissom, 1989a: 132; Sissom, 1990a: 110, 114; Sissom, 1991b: 4, 26-27; Sissom,
1991a: 215-216; Sissom & Stockwell, 1991: 199; Williams & Savary, 1991: 284;
Nenilin & Fet, 1992: 9, 10; Kovarík, 1998: 146; Beutelspacher, 2000: 56, 73,
152, Plate 12 (part), Plate 13 (part) ; Sissom, 2000:529-530; Ponce Saavedra &
Beutelspacher, 2001: 71; Soleglad & Fet, 2003a: 15, 28, 36, 67, 103, 109, 163,
164, figs. 66, 79, 80, D-2, D-4, Tab. 9.
Parabroteas:
Birula, 1917a: 163; Birula, 1917b: 139-140; Werner, 1934: 286, 287; Kästner,
1941: 235; Bücherl, 1971: 329; Soleglad, 1976b: 299; Francke, 1985: 20.
Pentheria:
Stockwell, 1992: 411; Kovarík, 1998: 128.
Description.
Prosoma.
– Anterior carapacial margin broadly V-shaped to essentially straight, with a
subtle median indentation.
Mesosoma.
– Pectinal tooth counts 11-32 in males, 10-29 in females. All female pectinal
teeth similar in size and shape, and with sensorial areas.
Metasoma.
– Dorsal carinae of segments I-IV with weak to strong angular termination,
sometimes with the distalmost denticle enlarged, subspinoid. Ventral submedian
carinae of segments I-IV paired and variously developed, ranging from absent on
all segments to granular to denticulate (strength and granulation usually
increasing posteriorly). Segment V with linear ventromedian carina (i.e., not
bifurcated distally).
Chelicerae.
– Ventral margin of the cheliceral movable finger with or without denticles or
crenulations; fixed finger lacking ventral denticles,
except in a few species. Serrula reduced to well developed
distoventrally on movable finger.
Pedipalps.
– Patella:
Inner face with basal tubercles moderately developed; inner longitudinal carina
present in most species. Chelal carinae: Carinal development variable,
some with all carinae developed and granular to denticulate, others with various
carinae reduced, still others with all carinae absent. Undersurface of chela
more or less rounded. Chela dentition: Terminal denticles not
prominent, conically shaped. Chela fixed finger with primary denticle row
divided into five to six subrows of denticles, these are flanked by four to six
(usually six) inner accessory denticles. Chela movable finger with primary
denticle row divided into five to seven subrows of denticles, these flanked by
four to eight (usually six or seven) inner accessory denticles. Denticles of
denticle row variable, subconical to peglike, rounded to subserrate.
Trichobothrial Pattern.
Patella with two ventral
trichobothria along ventroexternal carina (the third ventral trichobothrium is
positioned on the external face). Chela with four ventral (V) trichobothria..
Chelal trichobothrium ib positioned on the fixed finger, either at the
base or displaced distally to near the level of the sixth inner accessory
denticle of the finger dentate margin. Chela finger trichobothrium est
about equidistant between et and esb.
Legs.
– Basitarsi and telotarsi in most species without setal combs (a few species,
or populations of species, may have setal combs, but these are unlike those of
Paruroctonus. Telotarsi ventrally with a median row of small spinules
that are flanked distally by one or more pairs of slightly larger spinules.
Ventromedian spinule row flanked laterally by setae.
Hemispermatophore.
– Mating plug present or absent. Lamellar hook variable.
Included
Groups. – eusthenura,
intrepidus, mexicanus, nitidulus, punctipalpi.
Species not placed in
species groups:
V. spicatus Haradon, 1974;
V. mumai Sissom, 1993;
V. pequeno Hendrixson, 2001;
V. acapulco Armas & Eliezer Martín,
2001;V. nayarit
Armas & Eliezer Martín, 2001; V. cisnerosi
Ponce Saavedra & Sissom, 2004; V. kuarapu
Francke & Ponce Saavedra, 2006.
Similar taxa.
See other genera, as indicated in
the "species groups" descriptions.
Remarks.
- Comprising 74 species and 10 subspecies, Vaejovis is the largest genus
of North American scorpions and third largest scorpion genus in the world (after
the buthid genus Tityus and the scorpionid genus Opistophthalmus).
It includes a diverse assemblage of fossorial, psammophilous, lithophilous and
troglobitic species found in equally diverse habitats. However, it is neither
monophyletic (Stockwell 1989; Sissom 1985) nor do any modern keys cover its
component species. Most older keys are outdated, an exception being that for
species in Baja California (Williams 1980). Five species groups (the
eusthenura group,
intrepidus group,
mexicanus group,
nitidulus group, and
punctipalpi group) are recognized, but it is unclear which, if any, are
monophyletic (the mexicanus group is probably not) and several species
cannot be assigned to any of the above groups (see Catalog).
Several other vaejovid genera were at one time
recognized as species groups within Vaejovis:
Serradigitus,
Paruroctonus, and
Pseudouroctonus.
Literature Cited:
Hendrixson,
B.E. 2001. A new species of Vaejovis (Scorpiones, Vaejovidae) from
Sonora, Mexico. Journal of Arachnology
29: 47–55.
Sissom, W.D.
1985. Systematics of the nitidulus group of the genus Vaejovis,
with comments on phylogenetic relationships within the family Vaejovidae (Arachnida:
Scorpiones). Ph.D. Dissertation, Vanderbilt University.
Sissom, W.D. 1993. A new
species of Vaejovis (Scorpines, Vaejovidae) from western Arizona, with
supplemental notes on the male of Vaejovis spicatus Haradon. Journal of Arachnology
21: 64–68.
Sissom, W.D. & Francke, O.F.
1985. Redescriptions of some poorly known species of the nitidulus group
of the genus Vaejovis (Scorpiones, Vaejovidae). Journal of Arachnology
13: 243–266.
Stockwell, S.A. 1989.
Revision of the phylogeny and higher classification of scorpions (Chelicerata).
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California,
Berkeley.
Williams,
S.C. 1980. Scorpions of Baja California, Mexico, and adjacent islands. Occasional Papers of the Califorinia Academy of Sciences
135: 1–127.
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