In Memoriam: Giraldo Alayón García

Posted by
  In Memoriam: Giraldo Alayón García -  Photo © Facebook/National Museum of Natural History of Cuba In Memoriam: Giraldo Alayón García The arachnological community mourns the loss of Giraldo Alayón García, a Cuban zoologist whose work helped bring the spiders of Cuba and the wider Caribbean into clearer scientific view. As a researcher and curator at Cuba’s National Museum of Natural History, Dr. Alayón devoted decades to studying arachnids. His publications on spider taxonomy, evolution, and biogeography gave other researchers a stronger foundation for understanding the region’s biodiversity. He also shared that knowledge through teaching and scientific exchange far beyond Cuba. For those of us who care about taxonomy, his legacy is a reminder of the patient work behind every species description: examining specimens, recording differences, and preserving knowledge that others can build upon. His contributions will continue to guide the study of Caribbean spiders for years to ...

Light, camera, action: behavioral responses of the yellow scorpion Tityus serrulatus to different lights

Posted by

 


Light, camera, action: behavioral responses of the yellow scorpion Tityus serrulatus to different lights

Abstract

Scorpions cause 150k+ accidents per year in Brazil. Control of their populations involves manual collection and pesticides. Here we tested if light could be used to attract or repel the yellow scorpion Tityus serrulatus, the main responsible for accidents in the country. Based on previous studies on scorpion´s physiological and behavioral reactions to light, we tested wavelengths that correspond to red, green and violet, controlling temperature, absolute irradiance and electromagnetic stimuli. We built a ring arena divided into 5 parts and had the individuals freely walking in the presence of a light/control. We released the scorpions either away from the led to test attraction or close to the led to test repellency. Results showed avoidance to green light, and violet light on a smaller portion, that could be due to wavelengths, since those correspond to primary and secondary response peaks of the animal photoreceptors, due to the absolute irradiance of lights or both. These two wavelengths, therefore, have potential for scorpion control and deserve further investigations.
Rodrigues, M. C., Murayama, G. P., Moriyama, L. T., Ximenes, N., De Souza, L., & Willemart, R. H. (2025). Light, camera, action: Behavioral responses of the yellow scorpion Tityus serrulatus to different lights. Behavioural Processes, 105207. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beproc.2025.105207