Phrynus marginemaculatus, also known as the tailless whip-scorpion, is a species

Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...

 of amblypygid which is found in tropical and subtropical climates in North America

North America

North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

 and the Caribbean

Caribbean

The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...

. They are nocturnal animals, and during the day they hide in small humid places where they are hard to spot.

Appearance

The body of Phrynus marginemaculatus can measure up to 5 centimetres (2 in) long, but its front legs can reach 25 centimetres (9.8 in) long. It has three pairs of legs used as sensory organs for hunting and moving at night. Its cephalothorax

Cephalothorax

The cephalothorax is a tagma of various arthropods, comprising the head and the thorax fused together, as distinct from the abdomen behind. The word cephalothorax is derived from the Greek words for head and thorax...

 is wider than it is long, consisting of one pair of eyes on the front and 3 more pairs on the sides. They have no fangs, but instead have pincer-like pedipalp

Pedipalp

Pedipalps , are the second pair of appendages of the prosoma in the subphylum Chelicerata. They are traditionally thought to be homologous with mandibles in Crustacea and insects, although more recent studies Pedipalps (commonly shortened to palps or palpi), are the second pair of appendages of the...

s.

Behavior

They use their 3 pairs of legs to move sideways as a crab

Crab

True crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" , or where the reduced abdomen is entirely hidden under the thorax...

 would. Also, to feed on their prey, they capture them using their pedipalps then eating them with "fang-like" teeth. They are known to be one of the few species of arachnid

Arachnid

Arachnids are a class of joint-legged invertebrate animals in the subphylum Chelicerata. All arachnids have eight legs, although in some species the front pair may convert to a sensory function. The term is derived from the Greek words , meaning "spider".Almost all extant arachnids are terrestrial...

s that show social behavior

Eusociality

Eusociality is a term used for the highest level of social organization in a hierarchical classification....

. They take care of their young by walking in groups with them and comforting them with their legs.

Reproduction

To reproduce, the male P. marginemaculatus courts the female with his long front pair of legs. He puts a sperm packet into the female by guiding her over him using his front legs. She then places it inside her sex duct producing from 6 to up to 60 eggs. The female will then carry all hatched younglings on her back until they are grown enough to set off on their own.