Venom Mass Fingerprints for Species Delimitation, Reloaded: A Test Case with Italian Scorpions (Euscorpius)

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  Venom Mass Fingerprints for Species Delimitation, Reloaded: A Test Case with Italian Scorpions (Euscorpius) Abstract Scorpion venoms are complex mixtures of bioactive compounds including proteins, peptides and enzymes. Although venoms exhibit substantial intraspecific variation, some compounds appear to be species-specific, highlighting their potential as chemotaxonomic markers. Venom mass fingerprints (MFPs) derived from Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization Time-of-Flight (MALDI-TOF) Mass Spectrometry (MS) have been proposed as a means of delimiting species. However, their utility for species delimitation has rarely been evaluated against independent sources of taxonomic evidence. In the present study, the performance of MALDI-TOF MS-based venom peptide barcoding (mass ranges of m/z 800‒4500 and m/z 3000‒10,000) was assessed in 52 populations of eight Italian species of the scorpion genus Euscorpius Thorell, 1876, representing different levels of evolutionary divergenc...

Tarantula–Reptile Interaction: Lizard Predation Events by Species of Brachypelma and Amazonius (Araneae: Theraphosidae)

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Tarantula–Reptile Interaction: Lizard Predation Events by Species of Brachypelma and Amazonius (Araneae: Theraphosidae)

Abstract

We report three tarantula predation events on lizards, Amazonius elenae on Anolis ortonii in a tributary of the Amazon River, Peru, as well as two predation events by Brachypelma emilia and B. auratum on Aspidoscelis lineattissimus, A. deppii, and Hemidactylus frenatus.

Sosa-García, D. M., Chávez Ramírez, E. A., & C. West, R. (2026). INTERACCIÓN TARÁNTULA–REPTIL: EVENTOS DE DEPREDACIÓN DE LAGARTOS POR ESPECIES DE Brachypelma Y Amazonius (ARANEAE: THERAPHOSIDAE). Revista Latinoamericana De Herpetología, 9(2), e1588 (375 – 381). https://doi.org/10.22201/fc.25942158e.2026.2.1588