Arizona Whipspider

Description

These elusive arachnids are neither spider, nor scorpion. Whipspiders rely mainly on vibration and touch to perceive the world around them. Two legs have evolved into “feelers”. These long, antennae-like structures detect prey as they move about in caves or narrow crevices. Like scorpions, they have two claw-like appendages for capturing their live prey.

Truly one of the most unusual bugs, and they’re non-venomous!

Paraphrynus tokdod (formerly Paraphrynus carolynae or Paraphrynus mexicanus if you’re older than me) lives in Arizona and is seldom encountered. The species is considerably larger than the Florida native that is more popular in the hobby.

Current specimens are large. No guarantee on sexes.