Abstract
Scorpion systematics and taxonomy have recently shown a need for revision, partially due to insights from molecular techniques. Scorpion taxonomy has been difficult with morphological characters as disagreement exists among researchers with character choice for adequate species delimitation in taxonomic studies. Within the family Buthidae, species identification and delimitation is particularly difficult due to the morphological similarity among species and extensive intraspecific morphological diversity. The genus Centruroides in the western hemisphere is a prime example of the difficulty in untangling the taxonomic complexity within buthid scorpions. In this paper, we present phylogeographic, Ecological Niche Modeling, and morphometric analyses to further understand how population diversification may have produced morphological diversity in Centruroides vittatus (Say, 1821). We show that C. vittatus populations in the Big Bend and Trans-Pecos region of Texas, USA are phylogeographically distinct and may predate the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). In addition, we suggest the extended isolation of Big Bend region populations may have created the C. vittatus variant once known as C. pantheriensis.
Highlights
Scorpions are an ancient and widespread arthropod order well known for their medical importance as venomous arachnids [1]
The individuals we identified as the C. pantheriensis variant are all found in clades centered in the Big Bend region and further west, and are generally associated with the Rio Grande River basin
Superficial evidence exists for a separate C. pantheriensis clade, close inspection of the Bayesian tree indicates that within the Big Bend clade (‘‘F’’), several individuals exist within the clade that do not correspond to the C. pantheriensis variant
Summary
Scorpions are an ancient and widespread arthropod order well known for their medical importance as venomous arachnids [1] Less known is their importance as model organisms for ecological research comprising key components of desert food webs [2]. These desert scorpion species have been shown to exhibit ecomorphological specialization upon specifc habitats and possess morphological adaptations to unique edaphic substrates such as sand [2,3,4]. These edaphic specialist species illustrate the role of environmental effects upon scorpion morphological divergence and speciation. These recent studies illustrate the impact of molecular taxonomy in revealing patterns of diversity unrepresented through traditional morphological analyses
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