Beyond Venom and Constriction: Bite Performance and Trophic Ecology in the Genus Drymarchon

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  Beyond Venom and Constriction: Bite Performance and Trophic Ecology in the Genus Drymarchon Abstract Snakes exhibit extreme cranial kinesis that facilitates ingestion of prey with large cross-sectional area, but this ability is widely predicted to reduce bite performance due to decreased structural rigidity. Consequently, most large-bodied snakes rely on envenomation or constriction to subdue prey prior to ingestion. Species within the genus Drymarchon represent a notable exception: these large, non-venomous, non-constricting snakes routinely consume a wide range of prey, including large and potentially dangerous vertebrates, using only simple seizing and pinioning behaviors. Here, we quantify bite performance in three species of Drymarchon ( D. corais, D. couperi, and D. melanurus ), examine morphological predictors of biting performance, compare biting pressure to constriction pressure in similarly sized snakes, and synthesize dietary records across the genus. Our results sh...

Alpiscorpius kaleensis sp. nov., a new scorpion species from Denizli Province, Turkey (Scorpiones: Euscorpiidae)

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Alpiscorpius kaleensis sp. nov., a new scorpion species from Denizli Province, Turkey (Scorpiones: Euscorpiidae)

Abstract

A new scorpion species, Alpiscorpius kaleensis sp. nov., is described from Denizli Province, in the Aegean Region of western Turkey, based on morphological characters. The species is assigned to the genus Alpiscorpius, based on the presence of three trichobothria in the em series on the external surface of the pedipalp patella. Alpiscorpius kaleensis sp. nov. can be readily distinguished from all congeners by its orange-yellow males and brownish-orange females, the presence of distinct ventrolateral carinae on metasomal segment V, six trichobothria in the Pv series, and five trichobothria in the et series. The new species is compared with Alpiscorpius akkayai, A. hakani, and A. honazicus, all of which occur in Denizli Province, as well as with A. huyukensis from Konya Province, its most similar congener. With the description of this new species, the number of recognised species of Euscorpiidae in Turkey increases to 27, and the genus Alpiscorpius is now represented by 14 species in the country.

Acknowledgement

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Ersen Yağmur for generously sharing his work and his latest manuscript with me. I greatly appreciate his continued willingness to share his research and scholarship, and I am thankful for his collegiality and generosity.

Yağmur, E. A. (2026). Alpiscorpius kaleensis sp. nov., a new scorpion species from Denizli Province, Turkey (Scorpiones: Euscorpiidae). Zoology in the Middle East, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/09397140.2026.2711524