
Tailless Whipscorpions
Amblypygi
Amblypygi is an order of arachnids also known as whipspiders or tailless whipscorpions. The name "amblypygid" means "blunt tail", a reference to a lack of the flagellum that is otherwise seen in whipscorpions. Amblypygids possess no silk glands or venom. They rarely bite if threatened but can grab fingers with their pedipalps, resulting in thorn-like puncture injuries.
As of 2026, five families, 18 genera, and around 280 species had been discovered and described. They are found in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide, mainly in warm and humid environments. They like to stay protected and hidden within leaf litter, caves, or underneath bark. Some species are subterranean; all are nocturnal. Fossilized amblypygids have been found dating back to the Carboniferous period, such as Weygoldtina.
4 branches of this order, most-observed first

Phrynoidea
superfamilyPhrynoidea

Charinoidea
superfamilyCharinoidea

Charontoidea
superfamilyCharontoidea
Paracharontidae
familyParacharontidae
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
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geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
Drag the globe to turn it. Dots are where records exist, not a range map; darker means more records.
In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Amblypygi in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
This page is assembled live from iNaturalist, GBIF, Wikipedia, the Source Library and the Internet Archive. It is not yet part of the hand-edited codex. iNaturalist taxon 49722.