Two new arthropod toxins purified from the venom of the Mexican scorpion Centruroides nigrescens

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  Two new arthropod toxins purified from the venom of the Mexican scorpion Centruroides nigrescens Abstract The venom of the slender black scorpion Centruroides nigrescens , from the State of Guerrero México, was fractionated by Sephadex G–50 gel filtration, followed by carboxymethyl cellulose ion separation and high–performance liquid chromatography, permitting to obtain two new peptides toxic to arthropods. The estimate LD 50 of the soluble venom for the insect Acheta domesticus was 11.1 μg/g body weight, and for the arthropod Armadillidium vulgare was 61.1 μg body weight . The amino acid sequence of toxin Cnige1 (toxic to A. domesticus and A. vulgare ) contains 65 amino acids, with a molecular mass of 7273.37 mass units, whereas toxin Cnige2, toxic to A. domesticus , contains 68 amino acids, with a molecular mass of 7548.81 units. Both peptides are well packed, containing 8 cysteines, which in the native venoms are forming 4 disulfide bridges each. The amino acid sequences f...

Defensive behaviour plasticity in Ananteris mauryi Lourenço, 1982 (Scorpiones: Buthidae) facing different predator species

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Defensive behaviour plasticity in Ananteris mauryi Lourenço, 1982 (Scorpiones: Buthidae) facing different predator species


Abstract

Small species often fall prey to a wide range of predators in their natural habitats, and therefore require behavioural strategies to mitigate predation rates. In this study, we investigated the defensive behaviour of Ananteris mauryi, a small-bodied scorpion, against different natural predator species. Behavioural trials were conducted with A. mauryi individuals facing two different predators, spider and scorpion. Our results show that A. mauryi altered their defensive acts depending on the predator type, swinging their telson, cleaning their pedipalps, and run more frequently when facing spiders than scorpions. Additionally, we observed variation in the duration of behaviours according to predator type, with stinging attempts being performed more frequently against scorpions and run and metasoma swinging against spiders. Our findings suggest that scorpions have the ability to modulate their defensive behaviour according to the type of predator they face.


Silva-Júnior, A. O., Barbosa-da-Silva, H. R., Salomão, R. P., Moura, G. J., & Lira, A. F. (2023). Defensive behaviour plasticity in Ananteris mauryi Lourenço, 1982 (Scorpiones: Buthidae) facing different predator species. Behaviour (published online ahead of print 2023). https://doi.org/10.1163/1568539X-bja10235