Selected to survive and kill: Tityus serrulatus, the Brazilian yellow scorpion.
PLoS One
; 14(4): e0214075, 2019.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-30943232
ABSTRACT
Annually, more than 1.2 million scorpion stings and more than 3,000 deaths occur worldwide. Tityus serrulatus Lutz and Mello, 1922 (Scorpiones, Buthidae) is the most medically relevant species in Brazil where it is spreading rapidly and causing over 90,000 cases of envenomation yearly. We monitored T. serrulatus longevity and ability to reproduce under conditions of food and/or water deprivation. We found that T. serrulatus is highly tolerant to food deprivation, with individuals enduring up to 400 days without food. On the other hand, access to water played a pivotal role in T. serrulatus survival. Food and water deprived scorpions showed weight reduction. Reproduction occurred throughout the year for food-deprived scorpions and controls, but not in the water-deprived groups. Remarkably, food-deprived animals were able to give birth after 209 days of starvation. Tityus serrulatus resistance to food and water deprivation is likely to be an additional factor underlying this species' geographic expansion and the difficulties encountered in controlling it.
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Reprodução
/
Escorpiões
/
Privação de Água
/
Privação de Alimentos
Limite:
Animals
País/Região como assunto:
America do sul
/
Brasil
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2019
Tipo de documento:
Article