Buthidae

The deathstalker (Leiurus quinquestriatus) is a species of scorpion, a member of the family Buthidae. It is also known as the Palestine yellow scorpion, Omdurman scorpion, and Naqab desert scorpion, as well as by many other colloquial names, which generally originate from the commercial captive trade of the animal. To eliminate confusion, especially important with potentially dangerous species, the scientific name is normally used to refer to them. The name Leiurus quinquestriatus roughly translates into English as "five-striped smooth-tail". In 2014, the subspecies L. q. hebraeus was separate

The Buthidae are the largest family of scorpions, containing about 100 genera and 1300 species as of 2025. A few very large genera (Ananteris, Centruroides, Compsobuthus, or Tityus) are known, but a high number of species-poor or monotypic ones also exist. New taxa are being described at a rate of several new species per year. They have a cosmopolitan distribution throughout tropical and subtropical environments worldwide. Together with four other families, the Buthidae make up the superfamily Buthoidea. The family was established by Carl Ludwig Koch in 1837.

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thumb|Leiurus jordanensis adult female in captivity

Mesobuthus is an Asian genus of scorpions in the family Buthidae.

Ananteris is a little-known genus of rare scorpions. Scorpions belonging to the genus can be found from Costa Rica to Paraguay.

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Uroplectes is a genus of scorpions in the family Buthidae. They are known commonly as the lesser thick-tailed scorpions. There are about 40 species distributed in the Afrotropical realm. They are most diverse in South Africa.

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Buthus is a genus of scorpion belonging and being eponymous to the family Buthidae. It is distributed widely across northern Africa, including Morocco, Mauritania, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Senegal, Guinea-Bissau, Nigeria, Sudan, Somalia, Ethiopia, Djibouti, as well as the Middle East, including Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen, and possibly Saudi Arabia and southern Turkey. Its European range includes the Iberian Peninsula, southern France, and Cyprus.

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Hottentotta is a genus of scorpions of the family Buthidae. It is distributed widely across Africa, except for most of the Sahara desert. Species in the genus also occur in the Middle East, the Arabian Peninsula, southeastern Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Cape Verde Islands, and Sri Lanka (introduced).

Compsobuthus is a genus of buthid scorpions.

Apistobuthus is a genus of scorpions in the family Buthidae. It was described by Susan Finnegan in 1932, and was for a long time considered to be monotypic, containing the single species A. pterygocercus. In 1998, a second species, A. susanae, was described by Wilson Lourenço; its specific epithet commemorates Susan Finnegan. A. susanae differs from A. pterygocercus in having stouter legs and pedipalps, among other characteristics. Both species are highly venomous and the second segment of their tail is wider than the others.

Buthacus is a genus of scorpions in the family Buthidae. Species of the genus are distributed across northern and western Africa, Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Syria, the Arabian Peninsula, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan.

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Odontobuthus is a genus of scorpions of the family Buthidae.

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Buthoscorpio is a genus of scorpions in the family Buthidae.

Rhopalurus is a genus of scorpions belonging to the Buthidae family. This genus was described in 1876 by Tord Thorell.

Microcharmus is a genus of scorpions in the family Buthidae. The species are endemic to Madagascar.

Babycurus is a genus of scorpions of the family Buthidae.

Neobuthus is a genus of scorpion of the family Buthidae. It is distributed across the Horn of Africa; in Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somaliland, Kenya and Djibouti.

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Zabius is a genus of scorpions in the family Buthidae. There are three species described in this genus.

Aegaeobuthus is a genus of scorpion in the family Buthidae.

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Afrolychas is a genus of scorpion in the family Buthidae. There are two species in this genus, both of which used to belong to the genus Lychas. The genus was described in 2019 by František Kovařík. The genus name Afrolychas is a reference to the African range of its species and the fact that the two species used to be members of the genus Lychas. Afrolychas's closest relatives are believed to be the scorpions in the genus Pseudolychas. Afrolychas braueri is one of the rarest scorpions in the world, as it is listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List.

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Heteroctenus is a genus of scorpions. The following species are assigned to this genus:

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Hemibuthus is a genus of buthid scorpions. The genus was described as Hemibuthus Pocock, 1900

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