U.S.A.

Southwestern U.S.A. (New Mexico): 4 days (9–13 October 2008), Kari J. McWest and Keisha D. Hendricks, funded by the NSF REVSYS grant. REVSYS Volunteer Kari McWest traveled to the "bootheel" of New Mexico with his new fianceé, Keisha Hendricks. Their mission was to recover additional specimens of elusive undescribed scorpion species, along with solifuges, and other arachnids and myriapods from the desert mountains in that region and perhaps add new localities. Important scorpions at three of the five target localities were found, despite poor weather and road conditions. They drove from Canyon, Texas, to Portal, Arizona, where they met with Barbara Roth and "The Twins" (sons of Barbara and the late arachnologist, Vince Roth), who graciously hosted them for the first 2 nights. Kari and Keisha successfully sampled in the Little Florida Mountains near Deming, the Big Hatchet Mountains, Granite Gap in the Peloncillo Mountains, and in the Cookes Range. The scorpions collected here include a single specimen each of much needed undescribed species in three localities, which are very important to REVSYS, along with Vaejovis coahuilae, Centruroides sculpturatus, and Superstitionia donensis. After the difficult route into the Big Hatchet Mountains, Kari proposed to Keisha, who accepted! They also unsuccessfully sampled in the mountains of western New Mexico on their way to visit Joe and Judy Bigelow in Eagar, AZ, who provided additional information about target scorpion and solifuge species in Arizona and Texas. Four undetermined Aphonopelma specimens of two species were collected near Hachita, NM, and one juvenile from the Little Florida Mtns, for Dr. Brent Hendrixson.

U.S.A. (Southern Florida and Florida Keys): 15 days (23 September–7 October, 2008), partially funded by the AMNH Division of Invertebrate Zoology. David and Tamara Desoer spent two weeks collecting scorpions of the genus Centruroides from Florida. Of particular importance were collections made from Loggerhead Key and Garden Key in the Dry Tortugas. Other locations visited included sites through the keys and mainland, including both the Atlantic and Gulf coasts, central regions and the panhandle. Collections were made primarily in national and state parks, though the privately funded Tall Timbers Research Station. Various open use land areas were also visited. The final collection consisted of three species, C. gracilis, C. guanensis and C. hentzi, material that will be used to aid in a revision of the genus from both molecular and morphological perspectives. A visit to the collections at the Florida State Collection of Arthropods was also conducted, where a good deal of Centruroides material was examined.

Southwestern U.S.A. (Central New Mexico): 3 days (5–7 September 2008), REVSYS Volunteer, Kari J. McWest, accompanied by Keisha D. Hendricks and their baby, Sydda, traveled to New Mexico (ca. 900 miles/1,450 km) in search of Vaejovis species for DNA isolation and new records. Numerous stops between Santa Rosa and Ramah, NM, were sampled by UV and rock-rolling. Unfortunately, extremely dry conditions, coupled with a dry cold front that produced cool, windy nighttime conditions in the high desert, made all but one sampling attempt futile. Two specimens of an undescribed scorpion were recovered early during an exhaustive 2-hour search at one locality.

Southwestern U.S.A. (northeast Arizona): Two days (August 29-30, 2008), funded by the REVSYS grant. REVSYS volunteer, Zach Valois (undergraduate, Salt Lake Community College) and friend, Kelsey Neeley traveled over 1,250 miles to sample an important point of distribution of the Vaejovis vorhesi group. Obtaining permits, the type series of a new Vaejovis species was collected in the Chuska Mountains on the Najavo Indian Reservation in Apache County, Arizona. Several points in New Mexico were also sampled with no results. The montane theraphosid, Aphonopelma behlei was also found. At over 9,000 ft., this record represents one of the highest records to date. This trip yielded some important specimens that will fuel future work done in the area, especially in understanding speciation in A. behlei.

U.S.A. (Texas, southwestern New Mexico): 7 days (30 July–5 August, 2008), funded by the REVSYS grant. Co-PI David Sissom, accompanied by volunteers Tom Anton and Gary Casper, visited Big Bend National Park, Texas, to search in particular for Paruroctonus boquillas, P. williamsi, Vaejovis chisos, and a potential new species of Pseudouroctonus known only from preserved juvenile specimens. Two visits to Boquillas Canyon resulted in the collection of specimens of P. boquillas and V. globosus for DNA sequencing. The Big Bend area of Texas represents the northernmost limit of the distribution of V. globosus, so this population is of considerable interest. Collecting on the Pine Canyon trail (for V. chisos) and at the Grapevine Hills (for P. williamsi) was unsuccessful. Collecting at several potential locations for Pseudouroctonus sp. was also unsuccessful. Moving to southwestern New Mexico at the end of the trip produced unsuccessful results for Vaejovis species. The first night in New Mexico was rained out, with only three young Centruroides specimens collected in Hidalgo County. The second night resulted in the collection of three specimens of Vaejovis coahuilae in Luna County.

U.S.A. (California): 2 weeks (26 July–9 August, 2008), funded by the REVSYS grant, the Global Survey and Inventory of Solifugae, and the AMNH. Collaborator Warren E. Savary (CAS) and student volunteer Zachary J. Valois (undergraduate, Salt Lake Community College) travelled 1,600 miles throughout southern California to collect vaejovid species needed for the REVSYS project. Extensive sampling occurred through varied biotic communities including coastal grasslands, chaparral and sage scrub, Mojave Desert scrub, Colorado Desert scrub, conifer/oak woodlands, and Great Basin conifer woodland. Valois flew from Utah to Oakland, California, to join Savary for the trip. During the fieldwork, Savary and Valois met with staff from the U.S. Geological Survey (San Diego County), the Irvine Ranch Conservancy (Orange County), Orange County Parks (Orange County), research staff from the San Diego Wild Animal Park (San Diego County) and the National Park Service (Ventura County), forging continued support and collaboration for the project. Photographs of the Santa Cruz Island endemic Pseudouroctonus minimus thompsoni were provided to the National Park Service for their use, and informal lectures on the biology of scorpions were provided to Santa Cruz Island visitors and resident NPS staff. The team spent a day at the San Diego Wild Animal Park, accompanied by the park ecologist and a USGS surveyor, where they collected numerous theraphosids, scorpions, and solpugids from USGS pitfall traps, again discussing scorpion biology and the fauna resident in their study area. They also spent an evening at the Irvine Ranch Conservancy, a protected area in heavily developed Orange County, accompanied by the conservancy’s head field ecologist, interns, and park rangers in search of Pseudouroctonus. Recent fires at that site have allowed non-native mustard grass to push out native vegetation, hindering the team’s efforts. Conservancy staff, however, expressed a keen interest in continuing with the search for additional specimens. A visit to the White Mountains and Owen’s Valley during the second week of the trip included a night in the field with naturalist Durham Giuliani. Mr. Guliani guided Savary and Valois to former pitfall trap sites where he had found material of interest to the team. Altogether, more than nineteen scorpion species, representing at least eleven genera, were collected during the trip. Significant taxa collected during the effort included the extremely rare Vaejovis spicatus, from the Little San Bernardino Mtns, the Channel Island endemic Pseudouroctonus minimus thompsoni, and an undescribed species of Paruroctonus. Specimens of Uroctonites montereus were collected from near the southern end of its range in the Santa Inez Mtns of Santa Barbara County, and a diverse array of specimens belonging to the Vaejovis confusus species group, the Paruroctonus boreus species group, and the genus Serradigitus were collected from several localities.

U.S.A. (Arizona, New Mexico): 6 days (23–29 July, 2008), funded jointly by the REVSYS grant and the American Tarantula Society. Volunteer Kari J. McWest and Hunter M. Burrell traveled to the Tenth Annual Conference of the American Tarantula Society, stopped at more than 20 localities en route and collected numerous scorpions for the REVSYS project, solifuges for the Global Survey and Inventory of Solifugae and various other arachnids. Of special interest were two new records of small montane scorpions in New Mexico which may represent previously undiscovered species. Attempts to collect in several mountain ranges in Arizona were unfortunately stymied by Hurricane Dolly. Species collected on the trip include Paruroctonus gracilior, Pseudouroctonus apacheanus, Vaejovis coahuilae, V. crassimanus, V. spinigerus, V. cf. confusus, and several populations of V. cf. vorhiesi. Others seen include Diplocentrus spitzeri and Centruroides sculpturatus, representing known records.

Mexico (Baja California, Baja California Sur, adjacent islands): 50 days (26 May–15 July, 2008), funded by the NSF REVSYS grant, the Global Survey and Inventory of Solifugae grant and a grant from the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Fund (AMNH). Graduate students Edmundo González (AMNH) and Hector Montaño (IBUNAM) traveled 3,258 km through the deserts of the Baja California Peninsula and San Benito Island on the Pacific coast. González and Irma G. Nieto, a graduate student from Centro de Investigaciones del Noreste (CIBNOR), La Paz, Baja California Sur, collected on five islands in the Sea of Cortez. Approximately 3,000 scorpions, solifuges, amplypygids and spiders were collected, representing approximately 50 species, 12 genera and five families. Highlights of the trip include possible undescribed species in the genera Paruroctonus, Paravaejovis and Vaejovis. Fresh samples of 10 species for the DNA sequencing part of the project were obtained, including five species endemic to the following islands: Cerralvo, Danzante, Espiritu Santo, San Benito, Santa Cruz. González also studied the collection of scorpions housed at the CIBNOR during the period 15–24 June, where he found large series of rare species such Syntropis macrura, Vaejovis pattersoni and the first female specimen of Pseudouroctonus lindsayi.

Southwestern U.S.A (Arizona, California, New Mexico): 1 week (May 6-12, 2008) funded by East Carolina University. Volunteer Zach Valois (Utah) and Brent E. Hendrixson (Postdoctoral Fellow, East Carolina University) flew into Las Vegas from Salt Lake City, Utah and Raleigh, North Carolina, respectively, for a trip of more than 1,700 miles through the desert communities of of southeastern California, southern Nevada, and the northern half of Arizona. Between blacklighting for scorpions until late into the night and searching for tarantulas at the crack of dawn, Valois and Hendrixson obtained only a few hours of sleep each night. In spite of fatigue, the trip was fairly successful. More than fifty scorpions were collected, representing six genera and at least 11 species, including Hadrurus obscurus, near the eastern extent of its range. Some populations of Hadrurus obscurus and H. spadix were found in some considerably sandy areas, as opposed to the rocky outcrops and escarpments in which these species are most commonly found.

Southeastern U.S.A (Mississippi, Louisiana): 3 days (2–5 May, 2008), funded by the NSF REVSYS grant. Volunteer Kari J. McWest and his 10-year-old daughter, Malea, traveled to Natchez and Washington, MS, for a family reunion. Nearby is the Tunica Hills ecoregion of extreme southwestern Mississippi and adjacent Louisiana. Vaejovis carolinianus has been reported from this very small and biologically diverse area of loess hills, bluffs, and ravines on the east side of the Mississippi River between Natchez, MS, and St. Francisville, LA. The nearest records are about 200 miles to the east and northeast. Three specimens of Vaejovis carolinianus were collected for the REVSYS Vaejovidae grant under logs and in rotted wood in mixed hardwood forest where the soils are of ancient windblown silts (loess); there are no rocks or rocky roadcuts which are typical habitats for the species throughout most of its range.

Southwestern U.S.A. (Arizona, Nevada): 7 days (16–22 April, 2008), funded by the NSF-REVSYS grant. Zach Valois and Kelsey Neeley spent a week travelling more than two thousand miles through pine forests, Mojave scrub and Sonoran desert in Arizona and Nevada collecting scorpions for the REVSYS project. More than seventy specimens, representing five genera, were collected. The most important collections made during this trip included a new species in the Vaejovis vorhiesi group, tissue samples of Paruroctonus ammonastes for DNA isolation, and topotype samples of Smeringurus mesaensis.

Southwestern U.S.A. (Utah): Throughout 2007, Zach Valois made several trips, partially funded by the NSF-REVSYS grant, to the Grand and Emery counties, Utah. Over two thousand miles were travelled throughout Utah’s Colorado Plateau desert during the course of these trips, resulting in more than 130 specimens, representing four genera and six species, among them important samples of Vaejovis jonesi.

Southwestern U.S.A. (Arizona, New Mexico): 3 days (10–13 October 2007), funded by the NSF-REVSYS grant. REVSYS Volunteer Kari McWest travelled to the "bootheel" of New Mexico and Cochise County, Arizona, planning to collect vaejovid species from the mountains in that region and, with Manny Rubio, to investigate the unsampled Mule Mountains at Bisbee. Kari flew into El Paso and rented a car. In New Mexico, he visited the Florida and Little Florida mountains near Deming, the Big Hatchet Mountains, and Granite Gap and Antelope Pass in the Peloncillo Mountains. The scorpions collected here included Centruroides sculpturatus, Vaejovis coahuilae and Superstitionia donensis. Kari and Manny met up in Bisbee and traveled to the Mule Mountains, where they collected several Centruroides sculpturatus, the only scorpion species previously reported in these mountains, and a single female specimen similar to Vaejovis vorhiesi. On the way back to El Paso, Kari collected numerous specimens of very small Vaejovis spinigerus on the highway pavement. Granite Gap and Antelope Pass were also visited again in attempts to find Serradigitus agilis.

Southwestern U.S.A. (Arizona): 3 days (5–7 October, 2007), funded by the NSF-REVSYS grant. Zach Valois and Kelsey Neeley travelled ca. 1,200 miles through central and northern Arizona, sampling biotic communities from the lower Colorado plateau desert, upper and lower Sonoran, chaparral, and petran montane coniferous forest. More than fifty scorpion specimens, representing three genera and five species, were collected.

Southwestern U.S.A. (Nevada): 2 days (1–2 September, 2007), partially funded by the NSF-REVSYS grant. Zach Valois and Kelsey Neeley traveled over 1,500 miles to collect in the Hawthorne/Walker Lake area of Mineral Co., Nevada, a region consisting of Lahontan Salt Shrub basin, Tonopah basin, and sagebrush foothills. More than sixty scorpion specimens, representing four genera and six species, were collected. Among these species was Paruroctonus simulatus, an important species for the REVSYS project. On route back to Utah, Zach and Kelsey spent several more days collecting in other parts of Nevada and southern Utah, obtaining an additional fifty scorpion specimens.

Southwestern U.S.A. (Atascosa Mountains, Santa Cruz County, AZ): 1 day (14 September, 2007), funded by the NSF REVSYS grant. Naturalists Jim Bockowski, Donna Zeidel and Bill Schol accompanied Manny Rubio (zoologist living in Tucson) to search for Serradigitus agilis at the type locality. The description of the type locality is ambiguous and indefinite so the day was spent looking for suitable habitat that would be hunted with black-lights after dark. Fourteen potential sites (rock-faced road cuts with numerous, small, vertical fissures) were selected. No sites with a northern exposure were identified along the selected four mile stretch of road. Black-lighting (19h40-21h30) yielded a dozen specimens from five sites. All S. agilis were located from one to four meters above the ground on open, vertical faces; none were observed in habitat under canopy. Their diminutive size and quickness to retreat into small cracks made capturing S. agilis problematic; some escaped and others were crushed. A few likely locations, devoid of S. agilis, were inhabited by Centruroides exilicauda. One Pseudouroctonus apacheanus was found and appears to be a western range extension. A single Diplocentrus spitzeri was located among scree at the base of a S. agilis site. Vaejovis spinigerus were abundant (more than 40 specimens) along the ground litter in open and canopied places at all the sites searched; several were collected.

Southwestern U.S.A. (Arizona, California, New Mexico): 2 weeks (3-17 September, 2007), funded by the NSF REVSYS grant. Lorenzo Prendini and Jeremy Huff flew to El Paso, Texas, and traveled ca. 6,800 km, across the Chihuahua, Sonora and Mojave deserts, the Mogollon Rim, the Sierra Nevada, and the Central Valley of California, to San Francisco, before returning to New York. The aim of this trip was to collect tissue samples and morphological vouchers of solifuges, vaejovid, iurid and superstitioniid scorpions for two NSF-funded projects on solifuge and scorpion systematics. The first half of the expedition surveyed pine-oak forest habitats in the ‘Sky Islands’ of New Mexico and Arizona for small brown vaejovid scorpions of the Vaejovis vorhiesi group, which includes many short-range endemics. The second half of the trip focused on collecting endemic vaejovid, iurid and superstitioniid scorpions at lower elevations in the Sonora and Mojave deserts and the Central Valley of California. Although attempts to collect Paruroctonus ammonastes and Vaejovis spicatus near their type localities were unsuccessful, Prendini and Huff successfully collected Hadrurus obscurus at three places, including the type locality of this species in the Panoche Valley, and obtained many other interesting species in the genera Paruroctonus, Serradigitus, and Vaejovis. More than 1,000 specimens were collected in the course of this trip, including 28 scorpion species in eight genera and four families, among them a new species of Paruroctonus and several new species in the Vaejovis vorhiesi group. Solifuge collecting was less successful, with only a few eremobatids encountered along the way.

Southwestern U.S.A. (New Mexico, Texas): Several days (September, 2007), funded by the NSF REVSYS grant. REVSYS Volunteer Kari J. McWest travelled along Route 66 to the border area of New Mexico and Texas in search of the uncommon Paruroctonus pecos. Kari and Hunter Burrell were accompanied by Kara McWest-Torres, Kari's sister from Florida. A healthy population of Paruroctonus pecos was found along with P. utahensis, Vaejovis russelli, and Centruroides vittatus.

Southwestern U.S.A. (Arizona, Utah): 10 days (6–16 August, 2007), funded by the NSF REVSYS Vaejovidae grant. The goal of the trip, undertaken by Dr W. David Sissom, Tom Anton, and Gary Casper, was to accumulate additional samples of vaejovids for DNA sequencing and to expand the known geographical distributions of several taxa. David left from Amarillo, Texas around noon and collected Gary and Tom at the airport in Albuquerque, NM. By early evening, moderate to heavy rainfall in northwestern New Mexico eliminated the possibility of collecting that night. After staying at a hotel in Farmington, NM, the team pushed on to Moab, UT, to collect. Two days and nights in the desert habitats at Dead Horse State Park and vicinity yielded Paruroctonus boreus, P. utahensis, Vaejovis confusus, and Serradigitus wupatkiensis. One of the highlights was the finding of a female S. wupatkiensis carrying first instar offspring. After leaving southern Utah, the team headed toward the Flagstaff area in AZ. At various locations in the vicinity of Flagstaff, they found essentially the same species as at Moab, with the addition of an iurid scorpion, Hadrurus spadix. A daytime search for topotypes of V. lapidicola and a potential new species in the vorhiesi group were unsuccessful. The third leg of the trip took the team to the Black Mountains along the western edge of north-central Arizona. On the first night, they collected in the northern part of the range along Highway 68. After an inauspicious start, they collected specimens of Vaejovis confusus, V. spinigerus, V. hirsuticauda, Serradigitus joshuaensis, S. subtilimanus, and an iurid Hadrurus arizonensis. The second night, in the southern part of the range in the vicinity of Sitgreaves Pass, the team collected most of the species at the preceding location, but also found H. spadix. On route back to Kingman they stopped in the desert flats and found several H. arizonensis and V. confusus. The final destination for collecting was Canyon de Chelly National Monument. Despite sampling for two consective nights, surface activity and abundance were low. Collecting along the rock walls of the White House trail yielded only Serradigitus wupatkiensis. The second night’s collecting in sandy habitats on the south rim produced only Paruroctonus utahensis. After dropping Gary and Tom off in Albuquerque, an unsuccessful attempt was made to secure specimens of Paruroctonus pecos at the New Mexico/Texas state line, where the species had previously been found.

Southwestern U.S.A. (Texas, Arizona, New Mexico): 2 weeks (19 July–3 August, 2007), funded by the NSF REVSYS Vaejovidae grant. Jeremy Huff traveled to San Antonio, Texas, to deliver two presentations at the 2nd annual ArachnoCon meetings presented by Arachnoboards.com. In San Antonio a specimen of Pseudouroctonus reddelli was collected along with several Centruroides vittatus. Huff then traveled to Tucson, Arizona, and collected in southwestern New Mexico and eastern Arizona. Approximately 100 specimens, including Pseudouroctonus apacheanus, two species in the Vaejovis vorhesi complex, and new records for Vaejovis russelli, were collected. Unfortunately, due to the timing of ArachnoCon, the moon was full and severe thunderstorms greatly reduced the collecting success.

Southwestern U.S.A. (Arizona, New Mexico): Several days (June, 2007), funded by the American Tarantula Society (ATS). REVSYS Volunteer Kari J. McWest and his children Hunter Burrell and Malea McWest travelled to the 10th Annual American Tarantula Society Conference in Phoenix, AZ. Accompanied by members of the ATS, they collected Serradigitus wupatkiensis near the type locality, several "forms" of Vaejovis spinigerus, V. confusus, V. aff. paysonensis, Hadrurus arizonensis and Centruroides sculpturatus. On the return trip, they visited several forested mountains in search of Vaejovis vorhiesi relatives and were largely unsuccessful, with the exception of two specimens collected near the Arizona/New Mexico border.

Southwestern U.S.A. (Arizona, California): 3 days (20–23 October, 2006), funded by the NSF-REVSYS grant. During a trip to the AMNH Southwestern Research Station in the Chiricahua Mountains, Arizona, Ph.D. student Edmundo Gonzalez collected several specimens of Vaejovis feti. All specimens were collected during the day rolling logs and rocks. Two days later, Gonzalez joined REVSYS collaborator, Warren E. Savary and E. Gonzalez for two nights of collecting in the grassland of Panoche hills, San Benito Co., California, which yielded specimens of Serradigitus gertschi striatus and Vaejovis confusus.

U.S.A. (California, Nevada): 4 nights (20, 22–24 August 2006), funded by the NSF REVSYS grant. Jeremy Huff spent four nights collecting scorpions in CA and NV. Warren Savary joined Jeremy on August 20 for a field trip to northern Napa County, CA. Four vaejovid scorpion genera were collected: Paruroctonus, Pseudouroctonus, Serradigitus and Uroctonus. Jeremy then collected one iurid genus and three vaejovid genera near Reno, NV, on August 22: Hadrurus, Paruroctonus and Vaejovis. The following night, Jeremy collected three genera in the Hawthorne/Walker Lake area: Hadrurus, Paruroctonus and Vaejovis. The final night, Jeremy collected three vaejovid genera on Panoche Road in Fresno County: Paruroctonus, Serradigitus and Vaejovis. In total, over 280 specimens were collected including two important species for the REVSYS Vaejovidae project: Paruroctonus variabilis (type locality) and Pseudouroctonus iviei.

Southwestern U.S.A. (southern California, Nevada): 10 days (29 August–7 September, 2005), funded by the Richard Lounsbery Foundation. Lorenzo Prendini and Randy Mercurio flew to San Diego, California, and traveled ca. 3,700 km, via the Anza-Borrego and Mojave deserts, to Death Valley National Park, the Amargosa desert (Nevada) and the Sierra Nevada, returning to New York from Oakland, California. The aim of this trip was to collect tissue samples and morphological vouchers of vaejovid and iurid scorpions for Prendini’s projects on vaejovid phylogeny and DNA barcoding. The expedition surveyed habitats ranging from Sonoran desert, Mojave desert, Great Basin, chaparral, to oak and pine woodland, at elevations from below sea level (Salton Sea) to > 2,200 m (Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest). More than 600 specimens were collected, including 30 scorpion species in nine genera and three families, among them several species endemic to Death Valley and the Sierra Nevada.

U.S.A. (southern California): 2 weeks (13–26 August, 2004), funded by the Richard Lounsbery Foundation. Scientific Assistant, Randy Mercurio, REVSYS collaborator, Warren Savary, and REU interns Kanvaly Bamba and Michelle McCoy, travelled ca. 4,800 km through the desert, coastal dunes, and oak forest of southern California, from sea level to 3,100 m, and collected ca. 400 myriapods, spiders, and scorpions (two families, seven genera, ca. 15 species), including several endemic taxa for the REVSYS vaejovid project.

Southwestern U.S.A. (Arizona, New Mexico), México (Baja California, Baja California Sur): 2 weeks (16–31 May, 2004), funded by the Richard Lounsbery Foundation. AMNH Scientific Assistant, Randy Mercurio, joined Dr Michele Nishiguchi (University of New Mexico, Las Cruces), colleagues and students for a trip of ca. 5,300 km through the desert and semidesert of Arizona, New Mexico, Baja California and Baja California Sur. Mercurio collected ca. 250 myriapods, scorpions and spiders, including some important endemic genera and species for the REVSYS grant.

Southwestern U.S.A. (Arizona, New Mexico): 5 days (September 2002), funded partly by New México State University (NMSU), Las Cruces, and partly by funds from the AMNH. Prendini collected scorpions and spiders with former intern and current Ph.D. student, Lauren Esposito, Dr Gonzalo Giribet (Harvard University) and Dr Michelle Nishiguchi (NMSU), after visiting NMSU to deliver a seminar. We collected arachnids in the vicinity of Las Cruces and then travelled west through the Chihuauhuan desert to the Peloncillo mountains and north to the Gila Mountains. This trip yielded about 70 specimens, including eight scorpion species in three genera.

Scorpion Systematics Research Group