Leiurus is a genus of scorpion of the family Buthidae. The most common species, L. quinquestriatus, is also known under the common name Deathstalker. It is distributed widely across North Africa and the Middle East, including the western and southern Arabian Peninsula and southeastern Turkey. At least one species occurs in West Africa (northern Cameroon).
Taxonomy The genus was introduced in 1828 by C.G. Ehrenberg (in Hemprich & Ehrenberg 1828), originally as a subgenus of the genus Androctonus. It was finally elevated to genus rank by M. Vachon in 1949. The genus was long considered to be monotypic, containing a single species, L. quinquestriatus, but research since 2002 has shown that there are indeed several species.
Diversity Currently twenty species are recognized within this genus. Leiurus abdullahbayrami Yagmur, Koc & Kunt, 2009 Yağmur, E. A., Koç, H., & Kunt, K. B. 2009 . Description of a new species of Leiurus Ehrenberg, 1828 (Scorpiones: Buthidae) from Southеastеrn Turkey. Euscorpius, No. 85: 1-20. Leiurus aegyptiacus Lourenço & El-Hennawy, 2021 Lourenco WR, El-Hennawy HK. New considerations on the Leiurus Ehrenberg (Scorpiones: Buthidae) distributed in Africa and description of a particular species from Egypt. Serket. 2021;17(4):325-34. Leiurus arabicus Lowe, Yagmur & Kovarik, 2014Lowe G, Yagmur EA, Kovarik F. A Review of the Genus Leiurus Ehrenberg, 1828 (Scorpiones: Buthidae) with Description of Four New Species from the Arabian Peninsula. Euscorpius. 2014 (191):1-129. PDF . Leiurus ater Lourenço, 2019 Leiurus aylaensis Abu Afifeh, Al-Saraireh & Amr, 2025 Afifeh, B. A., Al–Saraireh, M., & Amr, Z. (2025). Revision of the genus Leiurus in Jordan, with a description of a new species and a new record (Scorpiones: Buthidae). Ecologica Montenegrina, 86, 81–118. https://doi.org/10.37828/em.2025.86.4. Leiurus brachycentrus Ehrenberg, 1829Lowe G, Yagmur EA, Kovarik F. A Review of the Genus Leiurus Ehrenberg, 1828 (Scorpiones: Buthidae) with Description of Four New Species from the Arabian Peninsula. Euscorpius. 2014 (191):1-129. PDF . Leiurus dekeyseri Lourenço, 2020 Lourenço W. R. (2020). Why does the number of dangerous species of scorpions increase? The particular case of the genus Leiurus Ehrenberg (Buthidae) in Africa. The journal of venomous animals and toxins including tropical diseases, 26, e20200041. https://doi.org/10.1590/1678-9199-JVATITD-2020-0041 Leiurus gubanensis Kovarik & Lowe, 2020 Kovařík, F., & Lowe, G. 2020 . Scorpions of the Horn of Africa (Arachnida: Scorpiones). Part XXIV. Leiurus (Buthidae), with description of Leiurus gubanensis sp. n.. Euscorpius, No. 309: 1-19. Leiurus haenggii Lowe, Yagmur & Kovarik, 2014Lowe G, Yagmur EA, Kovarik F. A Review of the Genus Leiurus Ehrenberg, 1828 (Scorpiones: Buthidae) with Description of Four New Species from the Arabian Peninsula. Euscorpius. 2014 (191):1-129. PDF . Leiurus heberti Lowe, Yagmur & Kovarik, 2014Lowe G, Yagmur EA, Kovarik F. A Review of the Genus Leiurus Ehrenberg, 1828 (Scorpiones: Buthidae) with Description of Four New Species from the Arabian Peninsula. Euscorpius. 2014 (191):1-129. PDF . Leiurus hebraeus Birula, 1908 Lowe G, Yagmur EA, Kovarik F. A Review of the Genus Leiurus Ehrenberg, 1828 (Scorpiones: Buthidae) with Description of Four New Species from the Arabian Peninsula. Euscorpius. 2014 (191):1-129. PDF . Leiurus hoggarensis Lourenço, Kourim & Sadine, 2018 Lourenço, Wilson & Kourim, Mohamed & Sadine, Salah. (2018). Scorpions from the region of Tamanrasset, Algeria. Part II. A new African species of the genus Leiurus Ehrenberg, 1828 (Scorpiones: Buthidae). Arachnida – Rivista Aracnologica Italiana. 16. Leiurus kuwaiti Lourenço, 2020 Lourenco WR. First record and description of a new species of Leiurus Ehrenberg from Kuwait (Scorpiones: Buthidae). Serket. 2020;17(2):143-9. Leiurus jordanensis Lourenço, Modry & Amr, 2002 Lourenço, W. R. (2022) A new subgenus and species of Leiurus Ehrenberg, 1828 from Iraq (Scorpiones:Buthidae). Serket, 18(4), 421–427. Leiurus macroctenus Lowe, Yagmur & Kovarik, 2014Lowe G, Yagmur EA, Kovarik F. A Review of the Genus Leiurus Ehrenberg, 1828 (Scorpiones: Buthidae) with Description of Four New Species from the Arabian Peninsula. Euscorpius. 2014 (191):1-129. PDF . Leiurus maculatus Lourenço, 2022Lourenco WR. A new subgenus and species of Leiurus Ehrenberg, 1828 from Iraq (Scorpiones: Buthidae). Serket.18(4):421-7. Leiurus nigellus Abu Afifeh, Aloufi & Al-Saraireh 2023 Abu Afifeh, B., Aloufi, A., Al-Saraireh, M., Badry, A., Al-Qahtni, A.H. & Amr, Z.S. (2023) A new remarkable species of Leiurus Ehrenberg, 1828 from Saudi Arabia (Scorpiones: Buthidae).Ecologica Montenegrina, 69, 91–106. https://dx.doi.org/10.37828/em.2023.69.9. Leiurus nigerianus Lourenço, 2021Lourenco WR. A new species of Leiurus Ehrenberg (Scorpiones: Buthidae) from Nigeria, with extension of the distribution range of the genus to the Southwestern portion of the African continent. Serket. 2021;18(1):1-10. Leiurus quinquestriatus (Ehrenberg, 1828) (type species) Leiurus saharicus Lourenço, 2020Lourenco WR. A remarkable new species of Leiurus Ehrenberg, 1828 from the north deserts of Mali (Scorpiones: Buthidae). Revista Iberica de Arachnologia. 2020(37):147-52. Leiurus savanicola Lourenço, Qi & Cloudsley-Thompson, 2006Qi, J., Lourenço, W.R., & Cloudsley-Thompson, J. (2006). The African species of the genus "Leiurus Ehrenberg", 1828 (Scorpiones: Buthidae) with the description of a new species. Leiurus somalicus Lourenço, & Rossi, 2016 Leiurus hadb Al-Qahtni, Al-Salem, Alqahtani & Badry, 2023
General characteristics Members of Leiurus are generally moderately sized scorpions that show a typical buthid habitus with gracile pedipalp chelae and a slender metasoma. The vesicle is bulbous and proportionally large in some species. The cephalothorax and mesosoma shows distinct granulation. Characteristically the tergites of the mesosoma bear five distinct, longitudinal carinae (ridges). The base color is generally yellow with brown to blackish areas extending over various parts of the animal, depending on species.
Toxicity The venom of L. quinquestriatus is among the most potent scorpion toxins. It severely affects the cardiac and pulmonary systems. Human fatalities, often children, have been confirmed by clinical reports. The median lethal dose of venom (LD50) for this species was measured at 0.16 - 0.50 mg/kgmice. The toxicity of the other species is also potentially high to life-threatening, but reliable data are currently not available.
Habitat Most species live in semi-arid to arid regions, including the Sahara and Arabian deserts. At least one species occurs in savannah environment. Sparsely vegetated and sandy or rocky substrates are preferred. The scorpions live in shallow burrows in sand or beneath rocks.
In captivity Members of the genus Leiurus are often bred in captivity and traded. Due to their extreme toxicity, keeping these species is strictly recommended to only very experienced and/or professionally trained people.
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