Geographic Range
Choloepus hoffmanni
(Hoffman’s two-toed sloth) is a native South American mammal whose distribution also
reaches Central America. The distribution extends from southern Nicaragua to Brazil
and Bolivia and is composed of two disjunct populations. The northern population extends
from Central America to northern and western Colombia, western Ecuador, and westernmost
Venezuela. The southern population spans the area east of the Andes in Ecuador, Peru,
Bolivia, and western Brazil. The two species of
Choloepus
(
Choloepus hoffmanni
and
Choloepus didactylus
) overlap partially in the Andean regions and western Amazonia.
- Biogeographic Regions
- neotropical
Habitat
Hoffman’s two-toed sloths inhabit lowland forests as well as higher altitude rain
forests. Habitat is limited primarily to areas of continuous canopy. Habitat selection
is correlated with social inheritance of the mother’s home range and tree preference.
Plant composition and availability change seasonally and also play a role in habitat
selection. In areas where Hoffman’s two-toed sloths coexist with three-toed sloths
(
Bradypus
species), it is less abundant.
Southern two-toed sloths
inhabit similar habitats to those of
C. hoffmanni
, but they seldom coexist and thus mostly occupy exclusive geographical ranges.
- Habitat Regions
- tropical
- terrestrial
- Terrestrial Biomes
- rainforest
Physical Description
Hoffman’s two-toed sloths are one of two species in the genus
Choloepus
. Species in this genus are easily identified by the presence of two claws on the
forelimb. The other extant genus of sloths, three-toed sloths
Bradypus
, have three claws on the forelimb. Hoffman’s two-toed sloths have head and body lengths
ranging from 58 to 70 cm, mass varies from 4 to 8 kg.
Males and females are monomorphic. Hoffman’s two-toed sloths have rounded heads and
flattened faces. The small snout is naked and protrudes from the flattened face. Ears
are round and thickened, almost always covered with hair. The coloration of body hair
in adults is a mosaic of tan, blonde, and light brown. Shading of the hair over the
head and back is often darker than the rest of the body. A good way to distinguish
C. hoffmanni
from
C. didactylus
is that the former lacks dark shoulder and forearm markings. The hair of
C. hoffmanni
can grow up to 15 cm. Hair covering the abdominal region grows from the midline laterally
so that the hair is parted. This serves as an efficient means to expel run-off water
since sloths spend the majority of their time hanging upside down. Sloths have two
coats, a softer inner coat and an outer coat that is longer and coarser in texture.
During dry seasons the coat appears brown. In times of abundant rainfall, the outermost
coat takes up a green hue due to the growth of algae. The fur coat also assists in
insulating the sloth.
The forelimbs are slightly longer than the hind limbs. The manus and pes are highly
modified in
C. hoffmanni
. Functional digits are reduced to numbers II and III in the manus and II, III, and
IV in the pes. Digits of the manus are syndactylous. The distalmost phalanges are
curved and possess claws that extend 8 to 10 cm. Soles of the manus and pes are bare
and equipped with thick-skinned glabrous pads. The tail is absent or vestigial.
One of the most constant mammalian morphological characteristics is the presence of
seven cervical vertebrae. Only three genera are known to be an exception to this constant,
Choloepus
,
Bradypus
, and
Trichechus
. The number can differ from individual to individual but it varies in
Choloepus hoffmanni
from 5 to 8 cervical vertebrae. Shortening of the neck (fewer than 7 cervical vertebrae)
in conjunction with thick musculature around the neck region and a robust clavicle
provide the rigidity that is needed to support the head while inverted.
There are five upper and four lower teeth in each quadrant for a total of 18 teeth.
Choloepus hoffmanni
lacks deciduous teeth and, instead, has ever-growing or hypseledont teeth. The teeth
lack enamel, instead they possess a harder layer of dentin which surrounds an inner
softer layer of dentin. Teeth erupt as simple conical structures and over time wear
into caniniform and molariform teeth. This process is termed thegosis. The softer
dentin center is worn away more quickly than the harder outer dentin layer during
occlusion. This in turn forms a basin in the center of molariform teeth with a sharper
outer layer. In adults, the anterior teeth are caniniform and are separated from the
homodont, molariform cheek teeth by a diastema. These anterior maxillary caniniform
teeth occlude with the posterior surfaces of the mandibular caniniforms. This occlusion
forms unique triangular beveled caniniforms, characteristic of
Choloepus hoffmanni
. In the cheek teeth, each mandibular tooth occludes anterior to the corresponding
maxillary tooth by an interval of half a tooth length. Other cranial osteological
landmarks include an incomplete zygomatic arch, of which the jugal has two processes
(lower and upper); inflated pterygoid region forming sinuses; open tympanic ring supporting
the tympanic membrane; and a crescent-shaped glenoid fossa.
- Other Physical Features
- endothermic
- heterothermic
- bilateral symmetry
- Sexual Dimorphism
- sexes alike
Reproduction
Males advertise their presence by distributing pungent smelling anal secretions onto
branches. This is thought to serve as a way to designate a meeting place between females
and males. The female may also advertise that she is ready to mate by exerting a high-pitched
scream. In response, interested males will move towards the female. If two males arrive
at the same time, confrontation can occur. Confrontation between males is an upside
down event. They grasp a branch with their hind limbs and swing with one or both forelimbs
at each other until one of them gives up. The male that remains will mate with the
female numerous times and then leave her on her own. Reproduction in
C. hoffmanni
also occurs in a hanging position.
- Mating System
- polygynandrous (promiscuous)
Breeding in Hoffman's two-toed sloths is seasonal. Pregnancy occurs during the rainy
season and births at the beginning of the dry season. The gestation period is about
11.5 months and usually yields a single offspring. Newborns are about 25.4 cm long
and weigh approximately 12 ounces. Offspring are born with claws, which are used to
cling onto the mother soon after birth. The mother carries her young for 6 to 9 months,
thereafter the offspring is independent. It has been reported that young are able
to consume solid food as soon as 2 to 5 weeks. Nursing may stop as soon as the end
of the first month. Sexual maturity in
Choloepus hoffmanni
is reached at about the age of 3 in females and 4 to 5 years in males. The inter-birth
interval lasts at a minimum 15 months.
- Key Reproductive Features
- iteroparous
- seasonal breeding
- gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
- sexual
- viviparous
Males typically lack interest following birth of offspring and are not involved in
their upbringing. Females are the sole source of parental care following birth until
independence. Newborns are partially precocial, although do depend on the mother for
a short time. The mother carries her young wherever she goes, providing milk in the
first month and solid food thereafter. While young are carried around by their mothers,
they learn where and what types of leaves are best to eat. As a result of this, familial
selectivity of tree types has been reported. Independence is usually acheived by 6
to 9 months.
- Parental Investment
- precocial
-
pre-fertilization
- provisioning
-
protecting
- female
-
pre-hatching/birth
-
provisioning
- female
-
protecting
- female
-
provisioning
-
pre-weaning/fledging
-
provisioning
- female
-
protecting
- female
-
provisioning
-
pre-independence
-
provisioning
- female
-
protecting
- female
-
provisioning
- inherits maternal/paternal territory
Lifespan/Longevity
Longevity in the wild is 12 years and in captivity 31 years. Mortality in the wild
can be due to age, death by natural predation, hunting by humans for bushmeat, and
loss of habitat due to deforestation.
Behavior
As arboreal mammals, Hoffman’s two-toed sloths eat, sleep, mate, and give birth suspended
from tree limbs. Individuals of
Choloepus hoffmanni
are primarily solitary. The only instances when interactions between members have
been observed are during mating or in typical mother-infant interaction. Groups inhabit
a single tree at any one time. It is rare that
C. hoffmanni
individuals leave the general area of their birth during their lifetime.
Hoffman’s two-toed sloths are nocturnal herbivores. Activity usually begins about
an hour after sunset and ceases by sunrise. During the day their location is mostly
at mid-canopy and evening hours are marked by movement towards the upper canopy. They
traverse tree tops in a hand-over-hand motion, traveling no more than 36.58 m in any
one day. Length traveled by each step averages 30 cm. Locomotion characteristics of
C. hoffmanni
includes climbing, crawling, and hanging.
Body temperature fluctuates with the temperature of the environment. Hoffman’s two-toed
sloths maintain a low body temperature of 24 to 33Ëš C. They are unable to shiver to
keep warm due to their low metabolic rate and decreased muscle mass. Although their
fur offers some means of insulation, they further regulate their body temperature
by moving in and out of the sun.
Although strictly arboreal, Hoffman’s two-toed sloths make their way to the base of
trees once a week in order to defecate. This is usually done at habitual defecation
sites. Other instances in which they travel to the ground are to change tree location
and, on rare occasions, to give birth and mate. In order to make it to the ground,
they descend head first. Once on the ground they use crawling locomotion. If forced
to defend themselves, they use their sharp claws or sharp caniniform teeth. In periods
of stress or to demonstrate aggressive behavior, Hoffman’s two-toed sloths may take
on a pop-eyed appearance. They are capable of partially retracting the eyes when the
eyelids are closed tightly, manifesting the pop-eyed appearance.
Home Range
Home range sizes of Hoffman’s two-toed sloths range from 2 to 3 ha.
Communication and Perception
There is a limited information on communication and behavior. This lack of knowledge
is largely due to their nocturnal, arboreal, and solitary lifestyle. Their sense of
olfaction is well developed, evident by the use of scent marking by males. Males scent
mark on tree branches via glands surrounding the anus. The purpose of scent marking
is to establish a meeting place with the females so that mating can occur. The female
may also vocalize via a high-pitched scream to advertise to males she is ready to
mate. These sloths are generally silent but have been known to hiss in times of high
stress or when agitated. Separation of an infant from its mother will elicit a loud
low-pitched distress call ranging from 30 to 90 seconds. Tactile communication has
been observed in the form of grooming between infant and mother. This is a mutual
behavior and involves licking the head, face, and anogenital region.
- Other Communication Modes
- scent marks
Food Habits
Hoffman’s two-toed sloths are primarily folivores. Their diet consists of leaves,
buds, tender twigs, young plant shoots, fruits, and flowers. They use their anterior
caniform teeth to pierce, crop, and slice food and process it with the posterior molariform
teeth. Daily food consumption in adults averages 0.35 kg. Digestion rate of leaves
is the slowest of all herbivorous mammals, with a passing rate of about two and a
half days. They have four-chambered stomachs, much like ruminants, which house bacteria
capable of digesting the rich amount of cellulose present in their diets. Their slow
metabolic rate allows them to survive on a small amount of nourishment as well as
to neutralize plant toxins due to long gut passage times. Basal metabolic rate is
about 45 kJ.
- Plant Foods
- leaves
- wood, bark, or stems
- fruit
- flowers
- algae
Predation
As strictly arboreal mammals that move little and are cryptically colored, Hoffman’s
two-toed sloths are relatively protected from predation. Their predators are are large,
arboreal or avian predators, especially harpy eagles (
Harpia harpyja
). Other predators include jaguars, ocelots, other arboreal cats, and large snakes,
such as anacondas.
- Anti-predator Adaptations
- cryptic
Ecosystem Roles
Hoffman’s two-toed sloths host a variety of organisms, including gastrointestinal
parasites, ectoparasites, and commensal arthropods (mosquitoes, sand flies, triatomine
bugs, lice, ticks, and mites). Algae grows on the fur of
C. hoffmanni
, a mutual commensalism. The algae obtain a protected habitat growing inside the
hair and the sloth becomes camouflaged alongside the foliage. The algae take up residence
in the longitudinal grooves of the pelage. The algae, in addition to providing camouflage,
may also contribute nutritional or trace element value to the sloths. Hoffman’s two-toed
sloths also provide trees with fertilizer by defecating (accounting for 30% of their
body weight) at the base of trees.
- Ecosystem Impact
- creates habitat
- keystone species
- algae
- mosquitoes ( Culicidae )
- sand flies ( Phlebotominae )
- triatomine or bed bugs ( Cimicidae )
- lice ( Mallophaga )
- ticks and mites ( Acari )
Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
Choloepus hoffmanni
is considered a flagship species and plays a role in ecotourism.
- Positive Impacts
- ecotourism
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
There are no negative effects of
Choloepus hoffmani
on humans.
Conservation Status
According to the IUCN Red List, the status of
Choloepus hoffmanni
is of least concern due to their large distribution, large population sizes, and
ability to inhabit somewhat disturbed areas.
Several factors that serve as potential population limiting factors of
Choloepus hoffmanni
include deforestation, agricultural activity, illegal trafficking, and an increase
in human settlements. In addition, local communities bordering the habitats of
Choloepus hoffmanni
have been known to take these sloths up as pets. In efforts to combat the negative
consequences due to human impingement several rescue and rehabilitation centers have
been built to assist those animals that are injured. Although there are obvious negative
consequences of habitat removal for animals as a whole, it has been hypothesized that
C. hoffmanni
might benefit from forest fragmentation which create edge habitats.
Other Comments
Choloepus is the only living genus of the family Megalonychidae. Fossil evidence shows that this family was once a much more diverse group and included many species of ground sloths. A Pleistocene megalonychid genus, Megalonyx , was widely distributed in North America and was notable for its very large size.
Unlike Bradypus species, Choloepus species easily adapt and breed in captivity.
Choloepus hoffmanni
exhibits karyotypic variation, 2n = 49 to 54.
Additional Links
Contributors
Vicky Apostolopoulos (author), Case Western Reserve University, Darin Croft (editor, instructor), Case Western Reserve University, Tanya Dewey (editor), Animal Diversity Web.
- Neotropical
-
living in the southern part of the New World. In other words, Central and South America.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- tropical
-
the region of the earth that surrounds the equator, from 23.5 degrees north to 23.5 degrees south.
- terrestrial
-
Living on the ground.
- rainforest
-
rainforests, both temperate and tropical, are dominated by trees often forming a closed canopy with little light reaching the ground. Epiphytes and climbing plants are also abundant. Precipitation is typically not limiting, but may be somewhat seasonal.
- endothermic
-
animals that use metabolically generated heat to regulate body temperature independently of ambient temperature. Endothermy is a synapomorphy of the Mammalia, although it may have arisen in a (now extinct) synapsid ancestor; the fossil record does not distinguish these possibilities. Convergent in birds.
- heterothermic
-
having a body temperature that fluctuates with that of the immediate environment; having no mechanism or a poorly developed mechanism for regulating internal body temperature.
- bilateral symmetry
-
having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.
- polygynandrous
-
the kind of polygamy in which a female pairs with several males, each of which also pairs with several different females.
- iteroparous
-
offspring are produced in more than one group (litters, clutches, etc.) and across multiple seasons (or other periods hospitable to reproduction). Iteroparous animals must, by definition, survive over multiple seasons (or periodic condition changes).
- seasonal breeding
-
breeding is confined to a particular season
- sexual
-
reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female
- viviparous
-
reproduction in which fertilization and development take place within the female body and the developing embryo derives nourishment from the female.
- young precocial
-
young are relatively well-developed when born
- arboreal
-
Referring to an animal that lives in trees; tree-climbing.
- nocturnal
-
active during the night
- crepuscular
-
active at dawn and dusk
- motile
-
having the capacity to move from one place to another.
- sedentary
-
remains in the same area
- solitary
-
lives alone
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
- scent marks
-
communicates by producing scents from special gland(s) and placing them on a surface whether others can smell or taste them
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
- cryptic
-
having markings, coloration, shapes, or other features that cause an animal to be camouflaged in its natural environment; being difficult to see or otherwise detect.
- keystone species
-
a species whose presence or absence strongly affects populations of other species in that area such that the extirpation of the keystone species in an area will result in the ultimate extirpation of many more species in that area (Example: sea otter).
- ecotourism
-
humans benefit economically by promoting tourism that focuses on the appreciation of natural areas or animals. Ecotourism implies that there are existing programs that profit from the appreciation of natural areas or animals.
- herbivore
-
An animal that eats mainly plants or parts of plants.
- folivore
-
an animal that mainly eats leaves.
References
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Taube, E., J. Keravec, J. Vie, J. Duplantier. 2001. Reproductive biology and postnatal development in sloths, Bradypus and Choloepus : reveiw with original data from the field (French Guiana) and from captivity. Mammal Review , 31: 173-188.
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