Urodacus lunatus
| Urodacus lunatus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Holotype ♂
Scale bar = 1 cm (0.4 in) | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Scorpiones |
| Family: | Urodacidae |
| Genus: | Urodacus |
| Species: | U. lunatus |
| Binomial name | |
| Urodacus lunatus Buzatto et al., 2023 | |
_and_Urodacus_lunatus_(green).png) | |
| Urodacus lunatus is only shown by green circles | |
Urodacus lunatus is a rare species of burrowing scorpion in the family Urodacidae. It is endemic to the northern part of western Australia and was described in 2023.[1]
Description
Urodacus lunatus cannot be distinguished from Urodacus uncinus with external morphology and examination of genitalia is required.[1]
Distribution and ecology
The species is known from nine specimens from three locations in Pilbara shown by the green circles on the range map. These locations only make up around 50 km2 (20 mi2), which means it is a short-range endemic species, as it is likely distributed in under 10,000 km2 (3860 mi2).[1]
It is likely fossorial but this is based on the similar species U. uncinus. It is hypothesized that the males travel longer distances to mate, as this is common in the genus.[1]
Etymology
The specific epithet "lunatus" refers to the crescent or lunate shape of the laminar hook in the hemispermatophore, a part of the genitalia.[1]
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 Buzatto, Bruno A.; Clark, Huon L.; Harvey, Mark S.; Volschenk, Erich S. (2023-11-03). Cooper, Steven (ed.). "Two new species of burrowing scorpions (Urodacidae: Urodacus) from the Pilbara region of Western Australia with identical external morphology". Australian Journal of Zoology. 71 (1). doi:10.1071/ZO23018. ISSN 0004-959X.