Urodacus manicatus

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Urodacus manicatus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Scorpiones
Family: Urodacidae
Genus: Urodacus
Species:
U. manicatus
Binomial name
Urodacus manicatus
(Thorell, 1876)[1]
Synonyms
  • Urodacus abruptus Pocock, 1888
  • Buthus flavicruris Rainbow, 1896

Urodacus manicatus, commonly known as the black rock scorpion, is a

scorpion belonging to the family Urodacidae. It is native to eastern Australia
.

History

The black rock scorpion was described by Swedish naturalist

Natural History Museum in London, was cataloging specimens of the genus and described what he thought was a new species—naming it U. abruptus— from two dried female specimens, one from Adelaide and the other labelled "New Holland".[3] German naturalist Karl Kraepelin concluded that Thorell's I. manicatus was the same species as U. abruptus and U. novaehollandiae.[4] It was also collected from Cooma by William Joseph Rainbow who named it Buthus flavicruris in 1896.[2] The genus Urodacus was placed in its own family in 2000. Before this, the group had been a subfamily Urodacinae within the family Scorpionidae.[5]

Description

Measuring up to 5.5 cm (2.2 in), it is dark brown or black.

Distribution and habitat

The species ranges from Queensland through New South Wales and Victoria into South Australia.[6] Its preferred habitat is granite outcrops in open forest.[7]

Behaviour

The scorpion excavates a burrow underneath rocks or logs with a terminal chamber and passage to the surface. It preys upon insects such as cockroaches and beetles, as well as other invertebrates such as millipedes, centipedes, spiders and rarely earthworms. Its sting can cause local pain and swelling in humans.[6]

Conservation

It is one of the species of scorpion most commonly seen for sale in pet shops in Australia and is relatively easy to keep in captivity, where it has a lifespan of 6 to 10 years. There are concerns wild populations are being depleted because of specimens taken for the pet trade.[7]

Venom

U. manicatus was recently shown to harbor a unique peptide toxin, presumably for defensive purposes. This cell-penetrating peptide selectively activates mammalian TRPA1 receptors, which are expressed in pain-sensing peripheral neurons, to produce acute pain and pain hypersensitivities, but not inflammation. For mechanistic insights into this discrepancy, see ref.

Wasabi Receptor Toxin or WaTx [10]

References

  1. ^ a b Thorell, Tamerlan (21 August 2013). "Species Urodacus manicatus". Australian Biological Resources Study: Australian Faunal Directory. Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, Commonwealth of Australia. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
  2. ^
    doi:10.18195/issn.0312-3162.21(1).2002.105-106
    .
  3. doi:10.1080/00222938809460897
    .
  4. ^ Southcott, R. V. (1955). "Some observations on the biology, including mating and other behaviour, of the Australian scorpion Urodacus abruptus Pocock". Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia. 78: 145–54.
  5. ^ Department of the Environment, Wate, Heritage and the Arts (9 October 2013). "Family Urodacidae". Australian Biological Resources Study: Australian Faunal Directory. Commonwealth of Australia. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
  6. ^
    Museum Victoria. Archived from the original
    on July 30, 2008. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
  7. ^
    ISBN 978-0975837085
    .
  8. PMID 32641835
    .
  9. doi:10.1101/2019.12.26.888982
    .
  10. PMID 31447178
    .

Further reading
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