Parthenogenesis

[the toe cutter]

I was just reading an article on parthenogenesis in Tityus serrulatus that was written 1995 and was wondering have any males since then been discovered? They were saying that there were no males ever found up to that point and that despite the fact that parthenogenesis seems to be less evolutionarily conducive compared to sexual reproduction, that T serrulatus populations are quickly becoming a real issue. I'll post the article, its old but one of the better I could find easily. Also, how many other scorp species, right off hand, are confirmed parthenogenic?


Heres the article: http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?pid=S0104-79301995000200002&script=sci_arttext&tlng=en

 

[AzJohn]

I was just reading an article on parthenogenesis in Tityus serrulatus that was written 1995 and was wondering have any males since then been discovered? They were saying that there were no males ever found up to that point and that despite the fact that parthenogenesis seems to be less evolutionarily conducive compared to sexual reproduction, that T serrulatus populations are quickly becoming a real issue. I'll post the article, its old but one of the better I could find easily. Also, how many other scorp species, right off hand, are confirmed parthenogenic?


Heres the article: http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?pid=S0104-79301995000200002&script=sci_arttext&tlng=en

I think there are male scorpions in wild populations. The captive population is entirely female.

I'm not aware of all off the parthenogenic species out there, just the ones being kept in captivity.

Tityus Stigmurus
Hottentotta hottentotta
Liochelus australasiae
Hottentotta hottentotta caboverdensis
Tityus metuendus


Like I said there are many more species out.

 

[Envyizm]

I'll add Tityus metuendus to the list. I believe there are some cuban Centruroides gracilis that are allegedly confirmed parthenogenic. I know there are a few other Parthenogenic Tityus and Hottentotta species out there, but they aren't in the U.S trade.

 

[Michiel]

Hi,

I am at work right now, so I can't look into my papers, but from the top of my head, the presumed males of T.serrulatus where redescribed as Tityus melicii. The list of parthenogenetic species is not long (a dozen or so) and there have been publsihed some interesting papers about this subject in the past years (Lourenco, L.K. Ross, Francke). You could Google i.e. "Francke+parthenogenesis"...

T.serrulatus is an "opportunistic" species that is highly adaptable (contrary to equilibrium species) to habitats, especially manmade habitats or those that where altered by humans. One can imagine that "highly adaptable" and "parthenogenetic reproduction" yields enormous numbers of these species. Reproduction rate is fast. This species (most Tityus sp.) easily become adult within a year, and are then able to reproduce 3-6 months later.
That's why they cause so much trouble in Brazil.......

Cheers, Michiel

 

[the toe cutter]

Thanks for the info thats what that article seemed to be saying about T serrulatus. I found it quite interesting that no males have yet been found. Though not completely uncommon like the all female new mexican whip-tail lizard(Cnemidophorus neomexicanus) that are some of the only true parthenogenic reptiles as some described as such are hermaphroditic. I know that the Tityus and Hottentotta genus have a few within their ranks, but still have males present in populations just not in certain geographical ranges.

It just really makes me wonder about the mechanism for this in scorpions. There are generally 4 different modes for parthenogenesis, but which pertains to scorpions? Pseudogamy(which I highly doubt for female only species since this requires mating from a male of the species), Automixis, Thelytoky or Apomixis? And I think though I may be completely wrong, but Apomixis is mainly a mode of parthenogenic reproduction in plants, so that would also not be the case here. With T serrulatus I would think it would be thelytokous, since there are no males in any populations and it is the most common form of parthenogenesis in invertebrates. But like with some parasitic wasps did this process begin with the introduction of bacteria like Wollbachia or Cardinum?

Maybe I need to just buy a book huh? Well thanks for help and maybe some of you more intelligent and enlightened invert people here can fork over some knowledge! Thanks

 

[Michiel]

Very good! Indeed Thelytoky applies to scorpions. There was one report of presumed Arrhenotoky in T.metuendus, but the author (Lourenco) later published that he had doubts about his earlier publication.
I had a conversation with a wasp expert (Dr. van Achterberg, curator Hymenoptera) of the museum I work for (temporarily) and he explained to me that bacteria are responsible for triggering parthenogenesis in these wasps. He "complained" If you treat these wasps with anti-biotics, these bacteria are killed and that he had to search for males again to further breed these.
I am not sure though if these bacteria are also found in scorpions and are the trigger of parthenogenetic reproduction.

PM me your e-mail and I send you some papers about the subject...

Cheers, Michiel

 

[the toe cutter]

Those were pretty amazing papers. I was unaware that there were so many studies being done in wild populations. As primitive as they are, their adaptive radiation and astounding capabilities for survival are amazing. I like scorpions more and more everytime I read more about them. Hopefully soon I'll have some more interresting species to study!