PARTHENOGENESIS THROUGH FIVE GENERATIONS IN THE SCORPION LIOCHELES AUSTRALASIAE (FABRICIUS 1775) (SCORPIONES, ISCHNURIDAE)

Abstract

Abstract Females of Liocheles australasiae (Fabricius 1775) collected from a maleless population on Iriomote Island, Ryukyu, Japan, and separately reared in the laboratory have parthenogenetically produced five successive generations in seven years. Many individuals of the first generation collected in July 1994, gave birth to the second generations from 1994–1998, and some of the second generation gave birth to the third generation from 1997–1999. The fourth generations were born from 1999–2001, and the fifth generations were born in January–August 2001. Most females of all generations gave birth to about 20 neonates after approximately an eight-month pregnancy. In the ovary of a fourth generation female, as well as in those of most of the second generation females, there were growing embryos and a number of oocytes of various sizes, suggesting a possibility of the sixth generation or subsequent generations by parthenogenesis.