Parabuthus hamar KovařÍk, Lowe

Kovařík, František, Lowe, Graeme, Elmi, Hassan Sh Abdirahman & Šťáhlavský, František, 2019, Scorpions of the Horn of Africa (Arachnida Scorpiones) Part XXI Parabuthus (Buthidae) (Part II), with description of five new species from Somaliland and Ethiopia, Euscorpius 290, pp. 1-63 : 19

Parabuthus hamar KovařÍk, Lowe , PlÍškovÁ et ŠťÁhlavský, 2016

( Figures 280–283, 305)

Parabuthus hamar KovařÍk et al., 2016: 23–34 , figs. 50–83, 90–91, 168–169, 187, 195, 204, table 2.

= Parabuthus terzanii Rossi, 2017 (2016) : 8–10, figs. 5–7. Syn. n.

TYPE LOCALITY AND TYPE REPOSITORY. Ethiopia, SNNPR, 20 km SE Konzo , 05°14‘33“N 37°32‘06“E, 839 m a.s.l. (Locality No. 16 EF, fig. 93 in KovařÍk et al., 2016: 27) , FKCP.

DIAGNOSIS. Adults from 88 mm to 92 mm long. Base color uniformly yellow to yellowish brown, carapace, tergites, metasoma IV–V and telson dark brown to black. Pectine teeth number 38–44 in males and 30–35 in females. Stridulatory area present on dorsal surface of metasomal segments I–II in both sexes, absent on third segment in adult male and very reduced in female. Metasoma densely hirsute. Metasoma of male narrow; metasomal segment V length/ width ratio 1.82– 2.05 in male. Movable and fixed fingers of pedipalp bearing 12–13 rows of granules, all with external and internal accessory granules. Fingers of pedipalp not elongated, movable finger length/ manus length ratio 1.7 in male. Fingers of pedipalps of male with inner side of base smooth, no trace of tubercle. Manus of pedipalp of male broad, pedipalp chela length/ width ratio 3.05–3.13 in male and 4.27 in female. Pedipalp manus smooth, patella strongly granulated. Tarsomere I of all legs with bristle-combs.

COMMENTS. KovařÍk et al. (2016, published 23rd August 2016) revised all Parabuthus species of Horn of Africa for the first time. After studying numerous specimens, the complex of P. liosoma was split into three sibling species with allopatric areas of distribution: P. abyssinicus Pocock, 1901 ( Eritrea, Djibouti, central and north-eastern parts of Ethiopia), P. liosoma (Ehrenberg, 1828) ( Yemen and Saudi Arabia), and P. maximus Werner, 1913 ( Tanzania and Kenya). A fourth species, P. hamar was described from the south of Ethiopia.

Rossi (2017, dated 14th July 2016, published/accessible in March 2017) described P. terzanii based on specimens from 1939 without studying the whole Parabuthus liosoma complex. However, under affinities he discussed its relationship with “ Parabuthus abyssinicus ” without any explanation as to why he invoked that particular name combination. In fact, the combination P. abyssinicus was used only in the period 1901–1915, bookended by Pocock (1901: 1) and Borelli (1915: 461). Birula synonymized this taxon with P. liosoma in 1917, and henceforth from 1917 to 2016 all authors referenced either P. liosoma abyssinicus , or just P. leiosoma (e. g. Borelli 1919 –1931, Caporiacco 1937–1941, see Fet & Lowe, 2000: 206). The name P. leiosoma was also used by Lourenço and Rossi in their paper in 2016 (2016: 26, dated 29th February 2016) for a population from Somalia (Sar Uanle). In fact, KovařÍk et al. (2016) were the first authors in 100 years to use the combination Parabuthus abyssinicus , and to provide a detailed explanation of the characters and distributional data justifying its restoration to species status. In light of these suspiciously improbable circumstances, it is apparent that Rossi (2017) appropriated the information for his affinities from our revision, and then pre-dated his own paper.

DISTRIBUTION. Ethiopia.