Check List 10(6): 1331–1335, 2014 © 2014 Check List and Authors Chec List ISSN 1809-127X (available at www.biotaxa.org/cl) Journal of species lists and distribution PECIES S OF Diversity of scorpions (Chelicerata: Arachnida) in the 1 ISTS André Felipe de Araujo Lira L Atlantic Forest in Pernambuco, northeastern2 Brazil * and Cleide Maria Ribeiro de Albuquerque 1 Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Centro de Ciências Biológicas, Departamento de Zoologia, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Animal. Rua Prof. Moraes Rego S/N, Cidade Universitária, 50570-420. Recife, PE, Brasil. 2 Universidade Federal de Pernambuco,[email protected] Centro de Ciências Biológicas, Departamento de Zoologia. Rua Prof. Moraes Rego S/N, Cidade Universitária, 50570-420. Recife, PE, Brasil. * Corresponding author. E-mail: Abstract: forest fragments This instudy Sirinhaém was conducted municipality, to measure Pernambuco the biodiversity State, through of activescorpion searches species at nightin the by remnants using UV of lamps the Brazilianbetween northeastern Atlantic Forest, an important phase center of biodiversity and endemism. Collections were performed in twelve Tityus pusillus Ananteris mauryi Tityus brazilae 19:00h and 21:00h during theTityus new neglectus moon in December 2012 Tityusand January stigmurus 2013. A total of 1,125 specimens from two genera and five species were collected: Pocock,T. 1893; pusillus Lourenço,A. mauryi 1982; Tityus brazilaeEickstedt, T. & neglectus, Lourenço, and 1984; T. stigmurus Mello-Leitão, 1932; and (Thorell, 1876), all belonging to the family Buthidae C.L. Koch, 1837. The most abundant species was (90.7%), followed by (7.1%). together represented less than 3% of the individuals sampled. DOI: 10.15560/10.6.1331 Introduction Atlantic Forest region, we surveyed the scorpions from twelve fragments of Atlantic Forest in Pernambuco to expand the knowledge of the scorpion fauna of this region. distributedThere areworldwide approximately except 1,900in Antarctica known (Sissomspecies The study was performed in the fragments belonging to of scorpions (Stockman and Ythier 2010) that are Trapiche Mill as part of the project for the protection of its fragments. The data from the present work provide 1990). Approximately 50% of these species occuret al.in information for the continued maintenance of the Neotropical regions (Lourenço 2002a), including Brazil, remnants of the Atlantic Forest in Pernambuco. ofwhere invertebrates roughly 130in all species environments are recorded where they(Porto live, the group2010). isAlthough poorly sampledscorpions and constitute little is knowna successful about group their Materials and Methods Study Area Atlantic forest (Dias et al. Field work was conducted in twelve fragments in the Forest,diversity an in important most ecoregions, center of particularlybiodiversity inand the endemism, Brazilian 2006). The Brazilian Atlantic cover and currently has only a few remnant fragments municipality of Sirinhaém (8°35′27″ S, 35°06′58″ W), in ofhas its suffered original aforest. significant These loss fragments of its nativeare isolated vegetation from the state of Pernambuco (Figure 1). Fragments, which are one another and are mostly surrounded by crops or Thesurrounded area is characterized by sugar cane, by rangeda mean annualfrom 6 temperatureto 469 ha and of pasture land (Mittermeier et al. were located at elevations of 20 to 120 m aboveet al.sea level. et al. 2005). Approximately 25°C and an annual rainfall of 2,400 mm (Silva 2010). secondary83% of the forests remnant with fragments different are levels <50 haof andregeneration only 1% rainforests.We collected According samples during to the the Trapiche dry season. staff, Theremnants Trapiche in (Ribeiroare >100 et ha al (Ribeiro 2009). They are composed of thisMill areaowns have approximately been under 4,000 the landowners’ ha of dense protection ombrophilous over arthropod populations and can be food for invertebrates . 2009). Although predators regulate many highlighting scorpion species composition in the remnants Franciscothe last 10 River, years. in This the region states isof located Alagoas, in Pernambuco,the ‘Pernambuco Rio ofand the vertebrates Atlantic Forest (Polis have 1990), been few performed ecological (Dias surveys et al. GrandeEndemism do Norte,Center’ and (PEC), Paraiba. situated north of the São et al. et al et al. et al Data collection 2006;Most studies Yamaguti on andarthropod Pinto dadiversity Rocha in2006; this Bertanienvironment have2008; been Porto restricted . 2010; to Lirainsects (Santos 2013; etPorto al. 2013). sampling units in each Trapiche fragment, making a total et al. et al. Six transects that were 20 m apart were used as (Resende et al. 2012; Souza Since 2013), no taxonomical spiders (Melo or ecological 2011), records and harvestmenon scorpion Theof 72 scorpions sampling found units. up Each to 5transect m from was either 30 sidem long of each and 2012a, 2012b). placed randomly at least 200 m from the remnant edge. fauna were available from the Brazilian northeastern transect were collected resulting in a 300 m² sampling 1331 Lira and Albuquerque | Diversity of scorpions in the Atlantic forest Figure 1. Map showing the distribution of forest remnants in Trapiche Mill and the position of the 12 studied fragments. area. The scorpions were located by actively searching for them between 19 h and 21 h for one night for each remnant. Each transect was covered twice (round-trip) for 1 h by a pair of collectors equipped with ultraviolet lights (Figure 2). Active searches were made during the new moon phase, from December 2012 to January The2013 specimens (the dry wereseason). identified Each scorpion according collected to Lourenço was individually stored in a vial containing 70% ethanol. the(2002b). Universidade Voucher Federalspecimens de (CA-UFPEPernambuco, #601 Recife. to 623) All scorpionswere deposited were collected in the byArachnological the permission Collection of Instituto of individualsChico Mendes in the de leaf Conservaçãolitter, barks, logs,de andBiodiversidade bromeliads. Specimens(ICMBIO) #36336-1. were either The outside data correspondedor just emerging to active from Figure 2. Scorpion individual under ultraviolet radiation. Photo by André F. A. Lira. Resultsthe refuges, as suggested by McReynolds (2008). exclusively in the leaf litter, while T. brazilae was found A list of species and their occurrences is presented in under bark in cracks, and inside their retreats showing extended pedipalps and open chela. T. neglectus and T. stigmurus were found in logs and leaf litter. Table 1. A total of 1,125 scorpions were collected. They were Tityusfrom two genera and five T.species, brazilae all belongingLourenço to& theEickstedt, family Discussion ButhidaeT. C.L.pusillus Koch, 1837. Four speciesT. neglectus were from the genus T.C.L. stigmurus Koch, 1836 ( found. Sixteen species have been recorded in the Atlantic 1984;genus Ananteris Pocock, 1893;A. mauryi Mello-Leitão, In northeastern Brazil, 28 specieset al. of scorpionset areal. 1932;Photographs of the (Thorell,collected 1876) species and are one shown belonged in Figures to the 3 Tityus pusillus Thorell, and A. 1981 mauryi ( were recordedLourenço, in all twelve1982). inForest Pernambuco. (Lourenço Dias 2002b, et al Dias 2006; Porto species2010). In in thisan urbanstudy, Atlanticone-third Forest of these fragment, species all was of whichfound and 4. were also found in this study.. (2006) found four scorpions followedfragments by (Table A. mauryi 1). The former was the most common Tityus pusillus was the most common species in all species, representing 90.7% of the total collected scorpions, fragments analyzed in the present work. The sedentary collected. The least common, representing species was7.1%. T. stigmurus,The other whichthree habit and microhabitat preference of the surface litter wasspecies found together only in onerepresented fragment. only No single 2.2% fragment of the scorpionshad more of this species are in agreement with Lira et al. and may facilitate sampling by active search, making this Tityus pusillus and Ananteris mauryi were collected species more visible and easier to capture. Tityus pusillus(2013) than three scorpion species (Table 1). 1332 Lira and Albuquerque | Diversity of scorpions in the Atlantic forest northeast region and a high ecological plasticity, since they (Porto et al. were recorded from different environments such as rain (Diashas also et al.been recorded in the Atlantic Forest of Bahia forest and dry forest. 2010,et al. Brazil and Porto 2011) and Paraíba Ananteris mauryi, the second most common species 2006), as well as in the Caatinga (Bahia and in the present work, shows an errant habit, inhabiting Piauí) (Porto 2010, Brazil and Porto 2011). These the lower layers of leaf litter, as described previously by findings indicate a wide distribution of this species in the Lira et al. .They also show metasomal autotomy (Lira et al (2013) . 2014). This species was originally described from PEC. Later, it was found in the states of Bahia and Sergipe (Lourenço 2002b; Brazil and Porto 2011). Using Figure 3. Tityus species collected in this study. A. Tityus brazilae Tityus neglectus Tityus pusillus and D. Tityus stigmurus Adriano M. DeSouza and D by André F. A. Lira. B. , C. Photographs A-C by Table 1. Number of individuals, species of scorpions, and fragment size (in hectares) of each of the twelve studied fragments. Mata das cobras (MC), Pedra do cão (PC), Tauá (TA), Canto escuro (CE), Ubaca (UB), Canto escuro 2 (CE2), Xanguá (XA), Xanguá 2 (XA2), Franco 1 (FR1), Franco 2 (FR2), São SCORPION SPECIES PedroFRAGMENTS (SP), and BaquinhaAREA (BA). Ananteris mauryi Tityus brazilae Tityus neglectus Tityus pusillus Tityus stigmurus 3 — — 55 FR1 — — — FR2 6.43 4 3 — — — 8.27 16 37 — 5 — BA 10.53 37 — — CE2 18.52 2 86 33.51 1 — — — UB 20.67 2 2 7 1 — — PC 47 — 1 — MC 46.08 9 173 SP — — CE 75.80 6 50 3 — — 120.70 1 0 2 96 TA — — — XA2 197.52 4 177 — 1 — 280.33 9 2 Total 85 8 XA 469.76 20 150 7 920 4 1333 Lira and Albuquerque | Diversity of scorpions in the Atlantic forest a fragment of the Atlantic Forest, Dias et al thatpitfall A.