New locality records and future habitat suitability of Sassanidotus gracilis (Birula, 1900) (Scorpiones: Buthidae) in the Iran–Afghanistan–Pakistan arid belt

Posted by
  New locality records and future habitat suitability of Sassanidotus gracilis (Birula, 1900) (Scorpiones: Buthidae) in the Iran–Afghanistan–Pakistan arid belt Abstract This study reports new locality records from Iran and a climate-based habitat suitability assessment for Sassanidotus gracilis (Birula, 1900) (Scorpiones: Buthidae) in the Iran–Afghanistan–Pakistan arid belt. We document new specimens from Sistan and Baluchestan Province, Iran, with an updated distribution map and illustrations, and we model the species' potential distribution across south-eastern Iran and adjacent parts of Afghanistan and Pakistan. Habitat suitability was associated mainly with precipitation seasonality, precipitation of the wettest month, precipitation of the driest month, and slope. In an arid setting these rainfall variables are unlikely to indicate a need for moist habitat; they more plausibly track seasonal productivity and the terrain features that provide shelter. Present-day suitable areas...

Review and key of the Chinese species of the genus Episyron Schiødte (Hymenoptera, Pompilidae), including descriptions of two new species

Posted by

 


Review and key of the Chinese species of the genus Episyron Schiødte (Hymenoptera, Pompilidae), including descriptions of two new species

Abstract

Here, we conducted a review of the Chinese species of the spider wasp genus Episyron Schiødte, 1837. Two new species, Episyron fulvimaculatus Song & Li, sp. nov. and Episyron immaculatus Song & Ma, sp. nov., from Yunnan and Inner Mongolia are described and illustrated, respectively. The male of E. rufotibius Anju, Girish Kumar & Thejass, 2024 is described for the first time. Additionally, three newly recorded species, E. albonotatum (Vander Linden, 1827), E. rufipes (Linnaeus, 1758), and E. rufotibius Anju, Girish Kumar & Thejass, 2024 are reported from Inner Mongolia, Yunnan, and Guangdong in China. The diagnoses are given for three known species and one subspecies from China. An illustrated key to Chinese species is provided.

Song Z, Dong L, Ma L, Li Q (2025) Review and key of the Chinese species of the genus Episyron Schiødte (Hymenoptera, Pompilidae), including descriptions of two new species. Deutsche Entomologische Zeitschrift 72(2): 133-154. https://doi.org/10.3897/dez.72.138061