The scorpions (Arachnida : Scorpiones) of the Aegean area: current problems in taxonomy and biogeography

The fauna and zoogeography of the scorpions in the Aegean area are not well researched and based upon specimens randomly collected and described by various authors in the past 150 years. A first revision ot the scorpions in this region was provided by Kinzelbach in 1975 (completed with maps in 1985). However, the taxonomical validity of some species and most of the subspecies, first of all those in the genus Euscorpius (Euscorpiidae) is still unclear and their geographic ranges remain rather uncertain. Current comparative studies on mitochondrial DNA and nuclear gene (allozymes) variation (Gantenbein et al., 1999a, b) of these scorpions, revealed such promising first results that, as a consequence, a longer-termed research project is now introduced to analyze the scorpion fauna of the Aegean area on a larger scale and with requested close collaboration of zoologists from universities in Greece, Turkey and Cyprus.