Habitat use and surface activity scorpion Centruroides margaritatus in Palo Verde, Guanacaste National Park, Costa Rica
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.22458/urj.v7i2.1154Keywords:
Centruroides margaritatus, habitat use, surface activity, vegetation, ambush behavior, resting behavior.Abstract
Centruroides margaritatus is one of the most common scorpions in Costa Rica, however almost null ecological or population-based studies have been conducted. Therefore, the objective of the present study was to characterize the habitat use and surface activity of this species in Palo Verde National Park, Costa Rica. Scorpions were searched intensively along transects at three sites: road, camp and forest. The microhabitat in each capture was characterized and the surface activity of the scorpions was recorded at the time of capture. C. margaritatus was found in different microhabitats: soil, leaf litter, herbaceous plants, shrubs, trees, and under rocks and fallen logs, with a preference to use vegetation to heights less than 50 cm. The scorpions were in an ambush behavior most of the times and were observed mostly in the vegetation, while they were in a resting behavior mainly under fallen trunks and rocks. The use of vegetation can represent a strategy to obtain food and also be in a safe place against predators. Nevertheless, the species adaptability provides the ease of using many microhabitats in sites where vegetation is scarce. While the study period was short, this research provides the first observations about the habitat use of this species in Costa Rica, which serves as a basis for future investigation.References
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