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Phrynidae is a mostly Neotropical family of medium-large amblypygids, (Quintero, 1981). Amblypigids, also known as whip spiders or tailess whip scorpions, are a little-studied order of arachnids that are notable for their modified whiplike forelimbs and formidable spined pedipalps (Hebets, 2002), which they use to capture arthropods and some times small vertebrates (Owen & Cokendolpher, 2006). Many whip spiders live in caves, and those above ground are strictly nocturnal (Quintero, 1981). While formidable in appearance, whip spiders are not toxic and are harmless to humans (Santer & Hebets, 2009).
Phrynidae consists of 4 extant genera: Phrynus, Paraphrynus, Acanthophrynus, and Heterophrynus (Quintero, 1981). Phrynids, due to their abundance throughout the Neotropics, are some of the better-studied members of Amblypygi, with much of what little we do know about whip spiders’ life history coming from these organisms (Hebets, 2002).