Molecular phylogeny of Compsobuthus matthiesseni Birula (Scorpiones: Buthidae) from Duhok Province, Iraq, as inferred from the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I gene
ABSTRACT
Compsobuthus matthiesseni Birula, 1905 is one of two scorpion species of the genus Compsobuthus Vachon, 1949 that is currently recognised in the scorpion fauna of Iraq. Although its morphology has been well documented, its molecular phylogeny remains poorly understood. In this study, 28 specimens of C. matthiesseni were collected from various locations across Duhok province, Kurdistan Region, Iraq. Morphological examination confirmed their identification based on established diagnostic characters. To complement the morphological data, DNA barcoding of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I gene was employed to infer phylogenetic relationships. The resulting maximum likelihood tree revealed that the Duhok specimens clustered with C. matthiesseni from Turkey in a strongly supported clade, while an Iraqi C. matthiesseni sequence from GenBank (MT229839.1) grouped with Comsobuthus yagi from Iran. Genetic divergence analyses indicated a higher divergence (10.17%) between the Duhok/Turkish specimens and MT229839.1 than between MT229839.1 and C. yagi (7.89%), suggesting that MT229839.1 may represent a distinct genetic lineage. These results provide evidence of potential cryptic diversity within C. matthiesseni and underscore the importance of integrating morphological and molecular approaches for accurate species delimitation.
Ali, F. R., & Kachel, H. S. (2025). Molecular phylogeny of Compsobuthus matthiesseni Birula (Scorpiones: Buthidae) from Duhok Province, Iraq, as inferred from the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I gene. Journal of Natural History, 59(29–32), 2023–2033.
