Diversity and seasonal composition of the scorpion fauna from a mountainous system on pampean grasslands in central Argentina

ABSTRACT

Scorpions are one of the most important taxa for ecological, conservation, and biogeographic studies. Biodiversity in the pampean grassland hilly environment is relevant because of the high number of native plant and animal taxa. We studied the diversity, abundance and phenology of a scorpion community in a natural reserve from central Argentina. Samples were taken monthly using 10 pitfall traps. Five species of scorpions (269 individuals) were observed in the study site (Bothriuridae). Bothriurus prospicuus was the most abundant species with 40.15% of the total individuals captured. The Shannon index was H´ = 0.69 and the evenness index was 0.83. Scorpion abundance was significantly different between months and was significantly correlated with monthly mean temperature. The knowledge on the scorpion fauna in “Ernesto Tornquist” Provincial Park could help in the preservation of natural grassland habitats.

KEYWORDS:

• Scorpions
• Ventania
• “Ernesto Tornquist” Provincial Park
• diversity
• phenology

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the OPDS (Organismo Provincial para el Desarrollo Sostenible) for the authorization to work in the Parque Provincial “Ernesto Tornquist” (Ventania). Thanks to the Park Rangers Maximiliano D’Onofrio, Facundo Cassalle-Pintos, and Anibal Areco for assistance in fieldwork.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

LS, SC, and GP are supported by Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET) fellowships. NF is researcher at CONICET.