Cryptic diversity within three South American whip spider species (Arachnida, Amblypygi)

Cryptic diversity (CD), the presence of highly divergent phylogenetic lineages within closed morphological species, has been documented for many taxa. Great arachnid orders such as Araneae or Scorpiones are well studied and many cases of CD have been described therein; to date, however, related research on smaller arachnid orders, such as whip spiders (Amblypygi), remains lacking. In the current study, we investigated CD based on cytochrome oxidase 1 (COI) in three nominal species of the genus Heterophrynus (H. alces, H. batesii, and H. longicornis), represented by 65 specimens. The sequences were compared using three different methods. All three species showed geographically structured CD. Thus, given its existence in this genus, it is important that CD and its spatial distribution be considered in future studies and possible conservation projects.