Journal of Health Sciences & Surveillance System

A Morphometric Study of Mesobuthus eupeus (Scorpionida: Buthidae) in Fars Province, southern Iran

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Mohammad Ebrahimi 1
Marziyeh Hamyali Ainvan, 2
Mohsen Kalantari 1
Kourosh Azizi 1

1 Research Center for Health Sciences, Institute of Health, Department of Medical Entomology and Vector Control, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

2 Department of Epidemiology, Ilam University of Medical Sciences, Ilam, Iran

https://doi.org/10.30476/jhsss.2020.86264.1086
Abstract
Background: Scorpions are a group of poisonous invertebrates that are widely distributed in the Middle East countries including Iran. They cause serious injuries and death to humans and domestic animals in Fars province. These arthropods are settled in subtropical regions of the province.
Methods: In this study, a total of 35 out of 430 Mesobuthus eupeus, including 15 males and 20 females, were selected, and then their major morphometric characteristics including the whole body length, pedipalp length, length and width of carapace, leg segments, abdomen, and tail segments, as well as the size of the poison gland, pectinal organ length, and pectinal tooth count were measured using a Collis-Vernier caliper scale.
Results: The measurements of different body parts were bigger in females than in males, except that pectinal tooth count in males (26.93mm±.88) was greater than that in females (22.20±1.00). The number of simple eyes on each side did not differ between males and females. Other features showed  to be higher for females than  males.
Conclusion: The results of the main morphometric features  showed that the mean scores of the characters, except for the pectinal tooth count, in female M. eupeus species were bigger than those in male ones. The findings of this study are suggested to be  used to provide a valid identification key for scorpions in Iran.

Keywords

Scorpion
Mesobuthus eupeus
Morphometric
Fars
Iran
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Journal of Health Sciences & Surveillance System
Volume 8, Issue 2
April 2020
Pages 69-74

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