Scorpio

Ythier, Eric & François, Alexandre, 2023, The scorpion fauna of the Oriental region in Morocco (Scorpiones: Buthidae, Scorpionidae) with description of three new species of the genus Scorpio Linnaeus, 1758., Faunitaxys 11 (3), pp. 1-15 : 14

Ecological comments on the distribution of the new Scorpio species

The high plateaus of the Oriental region, where Scorpio touili sp. n. occurs, extend over an area of approximately 30,000 km ² lying between 1000-1700 m altitude,delimited to the north by the chain of Horsts (Jerada mountains), to the south by the eastern High Atlas and Saharan Atlas, to the west by the middle Moulouya river basin and to the east by the Algerian-Moroccan border. The Oriental high plateaus represent the western part of the high plateaus stretching from northeastern Morocco to the Aures mountains in eastern Algeria.The climate is arid with cold winters. Temperatures are high during Summer (average highest temperature 35 -4 0°C) and low during winter (average lowest temperature 0 - 4°C) with a mean temperature variation of 20°C. Mean annual precipitation range from under 200 mm (south-east) to above 550 mm (north-west), with maximum precipitation during autumn and winter. Vegetation is predominantly composed of steppe formations ( Macrochloa tenacissima (L.) Kunth, Artemisia inculta Del. ) as well as pre-desert goosefoots ( Krascheninnikovia ceratoides (L.) Gueldenst.) and sparse pistachio trees ( Pistacia atlantica Desf. ) and jujube trees ( Ziziphus lotus (L.) Lam.). S. touili sp. n. also occurs in the southern part of this area (Tamlelt plain, Figuig surroundings) where vegetation includes north Saharan elements ( Fredolia aretioides (Coss. & Moq. ex Bunge) Ulbr. , Stipagrostis pungens (Desf.) De Winter ) on rocky grounds with some sandy surfaces (El Harradji, 1997, Defaut & François, 2019).

The Beni Snassen moutains, where Scorpio iznassen sp. n. occurs, stretch over 100 km (between 6 - 20 km wide) along the Mediterranean coast and is delimited to the north by the Triffa plain, separating it from the Mediterannean coast, to the south by the Angad plain, to the west by the Moulouya river and to the east by the Oued Kiss, along the Algerian-Moroccan border. It has an average altitude of 800 m with its highest point rising to 1535 m (Ras Foughal). The climate is Mediterranean with hot and dry summers and fresh and wet winters. Mean annual temperature is 17-18°C, with average highest temperature of approximately 30°C during Summer and average lowest temperature of approximately 3°C during winter. Mean annual precipitation range from 550 to 650 mm. Vegetation is predominantly composed of woody vegetation including evergreen oaks ( Quercus ilex L.), Barbary thujas (Tetraclinisarticulata (Vahl.) and kermes oaks ( Quercus Coccifera L. ) (Boumeaza T., 1985, Defaut & François, 2019).

The Moulouya river, originating on the eastern slopes of the Middle Atlas and flowing about 600 km up to the Mediterranean sea, has a basinextending over an area of approximately 54,500 km ². Its middle basin, where Scorpio moulouya sp. n. occurs, is characterized by an arid to semi-arid climate with cold winters. Mean temperature range from 18 -31°C during Summer and from 5 -1 8 °C during winter. Mean annual precipitation range from under 200 to 350 mm, concentrating on a limited number of days. In the areas with the lowest precipitation (Missour - OutatOulad el Haj area), steppes are overgrazed and with high proportion of bare ground; the vegetation is characterized by Hammada scoparia (Pomel) Iljin and Lycium intricatum ssp. pujosii Sauvage.Elswhere , the vegetationispredominantly composed of steppe formations ( Macrochloa tenacissima (L.) Kunth, Artemisiainculta Del.) as well as sparse pistachio trees ( Pistacia atlantica Desf. ) and jujube trees ( Ziziphus lotus (L.) Lam.)).In the more watered reliefs, vegetation is mainly composed of sparse forests of evergreen oaks ( Quercus ilex L.) and junipers ( Juniperus sp. ) (El Hannani et al., 2014, Defaut & François, 2019).

Composition of the scorpion fauna of the Oriental region in Morocco

Based on the material examined in this work, and comments on related species, 12 species are recognized to occur in the Oriental region in Morocco. The status of Androctonus mauritanicus (Pocock, 1902) , collected in the north of the region (Tafoughalt; Touloun et al., 2014), would need to be clarified, considering the distribution of the species on the western slopes of the Atlas, from Agadir to Tanger:

- Androctonus amoreuxi (Audouin, 1826)

- Androctonus australis (Linnaeus, 1758)

- Androctonus liouvillei (Pallary, 1924)

- Androctonus mauritanicus (Pocock, 1902) ? - Buthus albengai Lourenço, 2003

- Buthus lienhardi Lourenço, 2003

- Buthus oudjanii Lourenço, 2017

- Buthus tunetanus (Herbst, 1800)

- Hottentotta gentili (Pallary, 1924)

- Scorpio touili sp. n.

- Scorpio iznassen sp. n.

- Scorpio moulouya sp. n.