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Notes on the Diet and Reproduction of the Bark Scorpion Centruroides Gracilis (Scorpiones: Buthidae) on Utila Island, Honduras

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Notes on the Diet and Reproduction of the Bark Scorpion Centruroides Gracilis (Scorpiones: Buthidae) on Utila Island, Honduras Notes on the diet and reproduction of the bark scorpion Centruroides gracilis (Scorpiones: Buthidae) on Utila Island, Honduras Anna M. Davison, Tom W. Brown & Cristina Arrivillaga July 2020 — No. 314 Euscorpius Occasional Publications in Scorpiology EDITOR: Victor Fet, Marshall University, ‘[email protected]’ ASSOCIATE EDITOR: Michael E. Soleglad, ‘[email protected]’ TECHNICAL EDITOR: František Kovařík, ‘[email protected]’ Euscorpius is the first research publication completely devoted to scorpions (Arachnida: Scorpiones). Euscorpius takes advantage of the rapidly evolving medium of quick online publication, at the same time maintaining high research standards for the burgeoning field of scorpion science (scorpiology).Euscorpius is an expedient and viable medium for the publication of serious papers in scorpiology, including (but not limited to): systematics, evolution, ecology, biogeography, and general biology of scorpions. Review papers, descriptions of new taxa, faunistic surveys, lists of museum collections, and book reviews are welcome. Derivatio Nominis The name Euscorpius Thorell, 1876 refers to the most common genus of scorpions in the Mediterranean region and southern Europe (family Euscorpiidae). Euscorpius is located at: https://mds.marshall.edu/euscorpius/ Archive of issues 1-270 see also at: http://www.science.marshall.edu/fet/Euscorpius (Marshall University, Huntington, West Virginia 25755-2510, USA) ICZN COMPLIANCE OF ELECTRONIC PUBLICATIONS: Electronic (“e-only”) publications are fully compliant with ICZN (International Code of Zoological Nomenclature) (i.e. for the purposes of new names and new nomenclatural acts) when properly archived and registered. All Euscorpius issues starting from No. 156 (2013) are archived in two electronic archives: • Biotaxa, http://biotaxa.org/Euscorpius (ICZN-approved and ZooBank-enabled) • Marshall Digital Scholar, http://mds.marshall.edu/euscorpius/. (This website also archives all Euscorpius issues previously published on CD-ROMs.) Between 2000 and 2013, ICZN did not accept online texts as “published work” (Article 9.8). At this time, Euscorpius was produced in two identical versions: online (ISSN 1536-9307) and CD-ROM (ISSN 1536-9293) (laser disk) in archive-quality, read-only format. Both versions had the identical date of publication, as well as identical page and figure numbers. Only copies distributed on a CD-ROM from Euscorpius in 2001-2012 represent published work in compliance with the ICZN, i.e. for the purposes of new names and new nomenclatural acts. In September 2012, ICZN Article 8. What constitutes published work, has been amended and allowed for electronic publications, disallowing publication on optical discs. From January 2013, Euscorpius discontinued CD-ROM production; only online electronic version (ISSN 1536-9307) is published. For further details on the new ICZN amendment, see http://www.pensoft.net/journals/zookeys/article/3944/. Publication date: 16 July 2020 http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:5DD2FBCF-53A2-47CA-B66B-863879386A26 Euscorpius - Occasional Publications in Scorpiology. 2020, No. 314 Notes on the diet and reproduction of the bark scorpion Centruroides gracilis (Scorpiones: Buthidae) on Utila Island, Honduras Anna M. Davison*, Tom W. Brown & Cristina Arrivillaga Kanahau Utila Research & Conservation Facility, Isla de Utila, Islas de la Bahia, Honduras * Corresponding author: [email protected] http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:5DD2FBCF-53A2-47CA-B66B-863879386A26 Summary The brown bark scorpion Centruroides gracilis (Latreille, 1804) (Buthidae) is an abundant and widespread species, however, fairly little is known about its ecology and natural history. We include several observations from Utila Island, Honduras, that expand on the known literature regarding the diet and reproductive behavior of C. gracilis. We report several prey items for this opportunistic species, which include invertebrates such as spiders (including tarantulas), centipedes, katydids, and crickets; as well as a case of cannibalism between two adult females C. gracilis. We suggest that such cannibalism may be driven by high population densities and/or strong intraspecific competition for prey sources on the island. Additionally, we observed a courtship dance involving a female that still carried second-instar offspring, a common behavior within the Buthidae family, although, to our knowledge, not previously reported for C. gracilis. Introduction The following note documents a series of opportunistic observations concerning the diet and life history of C. gracilis The brown bark scorpion Centruroides gracilis (Latreille, on Utila, which includes various unusual predation events, 1804) is a large sized (total length, 55–120 mm; Armas et al., an observation of in situ cannibalism, and reproductive 2012), widespread and abundant species in the Neotropical courting behavior while dependent second-instar offspring are America and the insular Caribbean (Teruel & Myers, 2017), present. All data were collected as a by-product of performing including Utila Island, Honduras (Brown & Arrivillaga, various biodiversity surveys and fieldwork on Utila Island 2019). Despite being a common buthid scorpion in its range, in collaboration with local NGO Kanahau Utila Research & relatively little information is available on the ecology of C. Conservation Facility (KURCF) from 2017–2020. gracilis. Previously, most studies of Centruroides have focused on specimen taxonomic diversity and/or toxicity of included Observations species (Santibáñez-López et al., 2015); hence, few in situ observations of its natural history and ecology are published. The diet of Centruroides consists primarily of invertebrates, Ecology and Diet with very infrequent instances of vertebrate predation (Bender, Throughout the course of our studies, we primarily 1959); however, they are considered opportunistic (Lourenço & observed C. gracilis via flashlight after dark at various times Cuellar, 1995) and may consume any prey their venomous sting between the hours of 19:00 h to 23:00 h, while they were active can subdue. Although C. gracilis are not especially aggressive, at night, searching or waiting for prey on tree trunks, rocks, or their sting can, in some cases, have severe neurotoxic effects on amongst the leaf-litter in forested habitats, but routinely also humans (Toxinology WCH, 2018; Nentwig, 2018). Owing to within urban buildings and on agricultural lands. the errant, non-burrowing and actively roaming nature typical We recorded C. gracilis predating most frequently on of Centruroides, they will primarily respond to threats by various insects such as large cockroaches (Blattodea) and fleeing instead of confronting them (Carlson et al., 2014). This Orthoptera, including crickets (Gryllidae, Figure 1a) and differs from the only other scorpion species yet known from katydids (Tettigoniidae, Figure 1b); or spiders (e.g. Araneae: Utila, namely the endemic Diplocentrus insularis (Sagastume- Lycosidae, Figure 1c). Also, as we proceed to detail, several Espinoza et al., 2015), which in contrast have a very cryptic potentially dangerous prey items such as centipedes (Chilopoda: lifestyle, mostly hidden under rotting wood or sometimes in e.g. Scolopendromorpha, Figure 1d; Geophilomorpha, Figure burrows, and by comparison can act very defensively against 1e) and tarantulas (Araneae: Theraphosidae, Figure 2), as well threats (Longhorn, pers. comm., see also Sagastume-Espinoza as a case of cannibalism between two C. gracilis conspecifics et al., 2015). (Figure 3). 2 Euscorpius - 2020, No. 314 Figure 1. The diet of C. gracilis on Utila is composed of various invertebrates, which include; (a, b) Orthopterans, e.g. crickets (Gryllidae) and katydids (Tettigoniidae); (c) Arachnids such as the family Lycosidae (wolf spider); (d) unidentified Scolopendromopha and (e) unidentified Geophilomorpha centipede. [© a-d: Tom W. Brown; e: Chelsea Richardson] On the night of 27 February 2018, c. 20:30 h, an adult On 18 July 2019, 20:45h, an adult male C. gracilis female C. gracilis was encountered on the grounds of was encountered active amongst leaf-litter in forest habitat KURCF, perched c. 1m high on a thin branch extending at a location known as New Jerico, carrying a half-eaten from a pile of rotting logs and vegetation. The individual tarantula, which was later identified to belong to the had captured and killed a well-grown unsexed adult genus Stichoplastoris. Compared to T. albopilosus, this Tliltocatl albopilosus (Valerio, 1980) and was observed in unidentified Stichoplastoris species is rarely observed, and that position eating it for c. 30 minutes (Figure 2a). On thus was immediately confiscated from C. gracilis to enable 07 May 2020, 22:30h, we made a second observation of its identification. On further investigation, this sub-adult an adult male C. gracilis predating a small juvenile T. Stichoplastoris sp. can be distinguished from T. albopilosus albopilosus. by the former having a light brown dorsal colouration, more Davison, Brown & Arrivillaga: Diet and reproduction of Centruroides gracilis 3 rounded sternum, and in some individuals a golden-yellow resource availability, and/or high population density, therefore colored ventral abdomen (Figure 2b). acting as a self-regulatory agent by maintaining the stability On 21 July 2019, c. 21:00 h, an act of in situ cannibalism of the population (Polis, 1980; Solomon, 1949). Opportunistic was observed between two adult female C. gracilis (Figure
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