Cosmetidae

With 710 species in 126 genera, Cosmetidae constitutes the second largest family of Opiliones rivaled only by its hypothesized sister group, Gonyleptidae, which contains more than 800 species (Kury 1994, 2003). Cosmetidae comprises roughly 50% of the opilionid taxa found in Central American rainforest habitats (Kury 2003; Proud et al. 2012) where most species have restricted distributions and exhibit high degrees of endemism (Kury & Pinto-da-Rocha 2007).

Widespread distribution from South America to North America with peak diversity in Central America and many species endemic to islands in the Caribbean.