Choloepus didactylus

A Southern Extension of the Geographic Distribution of the Two-Toed Sloth, Choloepus didactylus (Xenarthra, Megalonychidae)

“…Although their distributions are reasonably well-understood on a broad scale, the precise boundaries of their ranges are still unresolved. According to Wetzel and Ávila-Pires (1980), Wetzel (1985), Adam (1999) and Eisenberg and Redford (1999), C. didactylus occurs across all of northern Amazonia, from the eastern Andes to northeastern Surinam, reaching the northern coast of Brazil in the states of Amapá, Pará and Maranhão. The maps presented by Wetzel (1985), Emmons and Feer (1997) and Eisenberg and Redford (1999) all suggest that in Western Amazonia, this distribution extends southward to 10°S latitude.…”

“…In central and eastern Amazonia, however, their maps show Choloepus didactylus as being restricted to a narrow belt along the southern edge of the Amazon River -although there is no ecological reason why the species might not occur further to the south. Wetzel and Ávila-Pires (1980) Adam (1999) and Eisenberg and Redford (1999). Soon thereafter, Toledo et al (1999) extended the distribution of C. didactylus to the region of Carajás in southern Pará, approximately 06°S, 50°W.…”

“…The two species of two-toed sloths, Choloepus didactylus and C. hoffmanni, are the only extant representatives of the Megalonychidae (Adam, 1999), occurring in partial sympatry in the Andean regions and western Amazonia (Le Pont and Desjeux, 1992;Emmons and Feer, 1997;Adam, 1999;Eisenberg and Redford, 1999). Although their distributions are reasonably well-understood on a broad scale, the precise boundaries of their ranges are still unresolved.…”

High morphological variation of vestibular system accompanies slow and infrequent locomotion in three-toed sloths

“…They are unique among extant placentals in exhibiting an activity pattern with very infrequent and slow motion. Their daily trips rarely exceed 100 m [12], and average speed does not exceed 0.5-0.6 km h -1 [13][14][15]. A few studies have previously investigated a possible relationship between these species' vestibular system morphology and their slow behaviour.…”

Mammalian Diversity and Matses Ethnomammalogy in Amazonian Peru Part 2: Xenarthra, Carnivora, Perissodactyla, Artiodactyla, and Sirenia

“…To the extent that Matses observations overlap with previously published results of scientific research on Choloepus, there is good agreement (e.g., about nocturnality, reproduction, and predation), but one discrepancy merits comment. Two literature reviews-one about C. didactylus and the other about C. hoffmanniboth claim that two-toed sloths can swim (Adam, 1999;Hayssen, 2011a), but none of the references cited in either review explicitly report swimming behavior in these species. 5 Most mammals, of course, can swim when necessary, but the absence of any published observation of swimming by Choloepus spp.…”