Tree diversity mediates individual diet specialization of the maned sloth (Bradypus torquatus)

Mureb, Laila Santim; Rocha‐Santos, Larissa; Cassano, Camila Righetto; Lopes, Gabriel da Silva; Rosa, Beatris Felipe; Miranda, Flávia Regina; Miranda, Carlos Ramón Ruiz; Giné, Gastón Andrés Fernandez

doi:10.1007/s42991-023-00348-5

Cited by 4 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…The landscape is composed of a secondary forest fragment (~560 ha) on the Brazilian coastal sandbank, with vegetation structure typical of the restinga forest, mixed with ombrophilous forest. Such a forest fragment is composed of rainforest tree species, with canopy height of 11–13 m and few emergent trees reaching more than 20 m (Mureb et al, 2023). In the study area, the maned sloths commonly feed on evergreen and dense canopy tree species such as Ficus clusiifolia , Bowdichia virgilioides , Tapirira guianensis and Trema micrantha (Mureb et al, 2023).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Such a forest fragment is composed of rainforest tree species, with canopy height of 11–13 m and few emergent trees reaching more than 20 m (Mureb et al, 2023). In the study area, the maned sloths commonly feed on evergreen and dense canopy tree species such as Ficus clusiifolia , Bowdichia virgilioides , Tapirira guianensis and Trema micrantha (Mureb et al, 2023). The reserve also contains some small open areas, including herbaceous/shrubby sandbank ecosystems, urban areas, trails and roads (Juncá, 2006).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Combined effect of ambient temperature and solar radiation on maned sloths' behaviour and detectability

et al. 2023

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Changes in ambient temperature and solar radiation may affect sloths' metabolic rate and body temperature, with consequent changes in activities, postures and microhabitat selection. Although the separate effect of temperature and solar radiation on sloth's behaviour have been previously studied, the combined effect of these climatic factors on behavioural aspects of sloths has never been systematically evaluated in field conditions. Here we evaluated the influence of hourly ambient temperature variation on maned sloth (Bradypus torquatus) activities, postures and tree crown positions, under sunny and cloudy conditions; and tested if any of the animal posture and position increase their exposure to human detection. We performed 350 h of visual observation on eight maned sloths, equipped with radio‐backpacks, in northern Bahia, Brazil, recording their activities, and their resting postures and positions on tree crowns. We also recorded the time taken to visualize the sloths on 58 days to analyse if sloths' detection is affected by posture and position. Higher ambient temperature, within a range of 21–33°C, increased the sloths' activity levels in cloudy conditions but reduced their activity in sunny conditions. Increasing ambient temperature also reduced the frequency of huddled posture and increased the frequency of extended posture and permanence in the inner tree crown. Lastly, the postures and positions did not influence sloths' detectability. Thus, the direction of the temperature–activity relationship depends on climatic conditions (sunny/cloudy), and individuals rely on resting postures and positions to thermoregulate. The warmer and drier future climate, expected to occur in the northern Atlantic Forest, may impose change in the diurnal activity levels and postural pattern for this threatened species, leading maned sloths to reduce its activity on sunny and warmer days and adopting an extended posture.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Combined effect of ambient temperature and solar radiation on maned sloths' behaviour and detectability

et al. 2023

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“…Forests in human-altered landscapes are prone to negative interactions with non-habitat areas, altering the climatic conditions and structure of the forest (Santos et al 2008, Rocha-Santos et al 2016. Seed germination from shade-tolerant trees may be hindered (Rocha-Santos et al 2016), and although individual maned sloths may use some shade-intolerant tree species, their suite of trees used as a food sources or for other daily activities is locally concentrated in a few species from different ecological groups (Chiarello 1998a, Giné et al 2022, Mureb et al 2023. Furthermore, forests near pastures face challenges such as cattle intrusion, leading to soil compaction and reduced plant seedling survival (Ali et al 2020, Searle & Meyer 2020, Mochi et al 2022.…”

Section: Current Composition Patternsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Undoubtedly, habitat loss is the main threat to these species, due to their strictly arboreal and folivorous habit (Chiarello 1998a, b, Giné et al 2015, Mureb et al 2023. Although maned sloths can use modified areas, such as cabrucas (cocoa agroforests) (Cassano et al 2011, Falconi et al 2015, human-induced land use (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

What, where, and how: a spatiotemporally explicit analysis of the drivers of habitat loss within the range of maned three‐toed sloths (Bradypus torquatus and Bradypus crinitus)

Santos,

Bogoni,

Chiarello

2024

Mammal Review

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The first step towards understanding the conservation situation and informing conservation decision‐making is to identify the habitat loss drivers. However, for nearly all tropical biota, there is a glaring lack of information on the spatiotemporal patterns of anthropogenic drivers. Our objective was to analyse the spatial and temporal distribution of the main anthropogenic drivers of habitat loss for Bradypus torquatus and Bradypus crinitus, two endangered and endemic species to the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. We used land‐use information associated with seven major IUCN‐based threats to sloths, covering a three‐generation time window (1988–2020), to quantify the current area occupied, temporal changes, heterogeneity, and intensity of drivers across species distributions. We found that cattle farming and ranching dominate the range of both species (from 49% to 56%) and cover an area larger than the remaining native forest. Other drivers also represent important spatial and temporal features of land conversion across species distributions. Driven mainly by livestock expansion, both sloth species have experienced a significant loss of forest cover (Bradypus torquatus – 659098.70 ha; Bradypus crinitus – 139013.20 ha) in the Brazilian Atlantic forest. Overall, Bradypus torquatus showed a higher rate of deforestation than forest regeneration, whereas forest gains outweighed habitat loss for Bradypus crinitus. Our results show that a substantial area of native forest – essential for strictly arboreal species – is being continuously replaced by cattle ranching and agricultural activities, which may lead to population isolation and decline, threatening the long‐term population viability.

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“…Animals which are likely to encounter substantial amounts of latex on a daily basis such as sloths which feed on the latex-containing Ficus tree [49], and colobus monkeys which feed largely on leaves but also fruit when available [50], have a relatively high pH in the first chamber (Table 1: sloths = pH 7.4; colobus monkeys = pH 6.8), whereas foregut-fermenting hippos and sheep are largely grass grazers and have a slightly lower anterior chamber pH [Table 1; hippos-pH = 5.7; sheep = pH 6.4]. This observation indicates a direct relationship between the amount of latex in the diet and levels of alkalinity in the anterior chamber.…”

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confidence: 99%

An Alkaline Foregut Protects Herbivores from Latex in Forage, but Increases Their Susceptibility to Bt Endotoxin

Rajan

2023

Life

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About 10% of angiosperms, an estimated 20,000 species, produce latex from ubiquitous isoprene precursors. Latex, an aqueous suspension of rubber particles and other compounds, functions as an antifeedant and herbivory deterrent. It is soluble in neutral to alkaline pH, and coagulates in acidic environments. Here, I propose that foregut-fermenting herbivores such as ruminants, kangaroos, sloths, insect larvae, and tadpoles have adapted to latex in forage with the evolution of alkaline anterior digestive chamber(s). However, they consequently become susceptible to the action of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) δ-endotoxin and related bioinsecticides which are activated in alkaline environments. By contrast, hindgut-fermenting herbivores, such as horses and rabbits, have acidic anterior digestive chambers, in which latex coagulates and may cause gut blockage, but in which Bt is not activated. The latex-adapted foregut herbivore vs. latex-maladapted hindgut herbivore hypothesis developed in this paper has implications for hindgut-fermenting livestock and zoo animals which may be provided with latex-containing forage that is detrimental to their gut health. Further, ruminants and herbivorous tadpoles with alkaline anterior chambers are at risk of damage by the supposedly “environmentally friendly” Bt bioinsecticide, which is widely disseminated or engineered into crops which may enter animal feed streams.

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Tree diversity mediates individual diet specialization of the maned sloth (Bradypus torquatus)

Cited by 4 publications

References 36 publications

Combined effect of ambient temperature and solar radiation on maned sloths' behaviour and detectability

Combined effect of ambient temperature and solar radiation on maned sloths' behaviour and detectability

What, where, and how: a spatiotemporally explicit analysis of the drivers of habitat loss within the range of maned three‐toed sloths (Bradypus torquatus and Bradypus crinitus)

An Alkaline Foregut Protects Herbivores from Latex in Forage, but Increases Their Susceptibility to Bt Endotoxin

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