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A recently discovered species of large Nepal scorpion is called Lulilan obscurus. In addition to the long head, which is characteristic of all scorpions, its strongly elongated abdomen is striking. Photo/University of Göttingen/Eurasiareview
This species belongs to a completely new genus and was introduced by Willmann as Lulilan obscurus in an article published in the journal Contributions to Entomology. “The look of this new scorpion that has been found is very strange,” Willmann said as quoted by SINDOnews from the Eurasiareview page on Friday (12/16/2022).
The male lulilan has a thin and very elongated abdomen, at the end of which is a large organ with long claws closed for mating. This scorpion fly has a body length of more than 3 cm, which means it is very large.
The insects were caught by the Mainz zoologist, Professor Jochen Martens, and his colleague from Stuttgart, Dr. Wolfgang Schawaller. Until recently, only one species was known and it was discovered exactly 200 years ago.
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Lulilan’s name for these new scorpion flies comes from their round genitals, which look like a scorpion’s sting. They also have a characteristic elongated head.
Of the female so far only a small part is known due to her different form from the male. Because the Lulilan female has very different characteristics from the male, which means that classification is much more difficult.
Of the scorpion flies that have been described, only the genus Leptopanorpa, native to Sumatra, Java and Bali, has evolved a distinctive stomach. However, it is not closely related to Lulilan’s scorpion fly.
“This is an outstanding example, where similar characteristics have emerged independently. Perhaps in response to similar evolutionary pressures,” Willmann said.
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Scorpionfly or scorpion fly, quoted by the Wildlife Trusts page, is an animal that has wings like flies, but also has a tail like a scorpion. In addition to the uniqueness of its tail, this insect also has a unique beak-shaped mouth.
Scorpion flies are insects classified in the order Mecoptera, which have existed on this earth since 250 million years ago. There are an estimated 550 insect species classified as scorpionfish.
Although it has a body shape similar to that of a scorpion, this insect has no relation to an animal famous for its venomous sting on its tail. “Although the name sounds dangerous, scorpion flies are completely harmless to humans,” Willmann said.
In the Asian continent, Indonesia is one of the countries with the most identified species of scorpions. Some of these species namely Neopanorpa mulleri found on the island of Java.
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There are also Neopanorpa umbonata (island of Sumatra), Neopanorpa spicata (island of Kalimantan), Neopanorpa angustipepicula (island of Java) and Leptopanorpa charpentieri (island of Java and Sumatra). There are only a few species of scorpionfish in Europe.
(wib)
