Activity Patterns and Rates of Movement of Two-Toed and Three-Toed Sloths (Choloepus hoffmanni and Bradypus infuscatus)

Sunquist, Melvin E.; Montgomery, G. G.

doi:10.2307/1379088

Cited by 87 publications

(85 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…Furthermore, while slow locomotion and suspensory behaviour are likely to have evolved convergently in both extant genera of sloths [50 -53], both display a rather highly variable configuration of the SC, even if this is much more distinctive in Bradypus than in Choloepus in our sample (figure 3 and the electronic supplementary material, figure S2). This latter fact coincides with the observation that three-toed sloths move less and more slowly than two-toed sloths [12,15]. According to our interpretation, the infrequent and slow motion of three-toed sloths could make the demand for precise detection of head angular movements relatively less important than in faster-moving animals.…”

Section: Europaea)supporting

confidence: 90%

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

et al. 2012

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The semicircular canals (SCs), part of the vestibular apparatus of the inner ear, are directly involved in the detection of angular motion of the head for maintaining balance, and exhibit adaptive patterns for locomotor behaviour. Consequently, they are generally believed to show low levels of intraspecific morphological variation, but few studies have investigated this assumption. On the basis of high-resolution computed tomography, we present here, to our knowledge, the first comprehensive study of the pattern of variation of the inner ear with a focus on Xenarthra. Our study demonstrates that extant three-toed sloths show a high level of morphological variation of the bony labyrinth of the inner ear. Especially, the variation in shape, relative size and angles of their SCs greatly differ from those of other, faster-moving taxa within Xenarthra and Placentalia in general. The unique pattern of variation in three-toed sloths suggests that a release of selection and/or constraints on their organ of balance is associated with the observed wide range of phenotypes. This release is coincident with their slow and infrequent locomotion and may be related, among other possible factors, to a reduced functional demand for a precise sensitivity to movement.

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Section: Europaea)supporting

confidence: 90%

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

et al. 2012

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“…For both species no difference was observed with regard to the distribution of TST between the light and dark periods [Campbell and Tobler, 1984]. Behavioral studies conducted on the two-toed sloth, Choloepus hoffmanni , showed that TST in these animals amounted to 16.4 h [Sunquist and Montgomery, 1973]. The brown-throated three-toed sloth, Bradypypus variegatus , was found to have TST of 15.84 h when it was recorded in captivity [Campbell and Tobler, 1984;de Moura Filho et al, 1983] and a TST of 9.63 h when recorded in the wild .…”

Section: Comparison To Sleep In Other Afrotheria Xenarthra and Othermentioning

confidence: 86%

Sleep in the Rock Hyrax, <i>Procavia capensis</i>

Gravett

Bhagwandin²,

Lyamin³

et al. 2012

Brain Behav Evol

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We investigated sleep in therock hyrax, Procavia capensis, a social mammal that typically lives in colonies on rocky outcrops throughout most parts of Southern Africa. The sleep of 5 wild-captured, adult rock hyraxes was recorded continuously for 72 h using telemetric relay of signals and allowing unimpeded movement. In addition to waking, slow wave sleep (SWS) and an unambiguous rapid eye movement (REM) state, a sleep state termed somnus innominatus (SI), characterized by low-voltage, high-frequency electroencephalogram, an electromyogram that stayed at the same amplitude as the preceding SWS episode and a mostly regular heart rate, were identified. If SI can be considered a form of low-voltage non-REM, the implication would be that the rock hyrax exhibits the lowest amount of REM recorded for any terrestrial mammal studied to date. Conversely, if SI is a form of REM sleep, it would lead to the classification of a novel subdivision of this state; however, further investigation would be required. The hyraxes spent on average 15.89 h (66.2%) of the time awake, 6.02 h (25.1%) in SWS, 43 min (3%) in SI and 6 min (0.4%) in REM. The unambiguous REM sleep amounts were on average less than 6 min/day. The most common state transition pathway in these animals was found to be wake → SWS → wake. No significant differences were noted with regard to total sleep time, number of episodes and episode duration for all states between the light and dark periods.Thus, prior classification of the rock hyrax as strongly diurnal does not appear to hold under controlled laboratory conditions.

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“…A mister above or near their browse items helps them maintain their hydration status. Even though these animals are solitary in nature [Sunquist and Montgomery, 1973], they can be housed together for short times as long as enough perches are provided to prevent competition.…”

Section: Special Housing Requirementsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Captive health and husbandry of the Bradypodidae

Raines¹

2005

Zoo Biol.

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The Dallas World Aquarium, Dallas, TexasMembers of the Bradypodidae (three-toed sloths) are rarely seen in the zoological setting. To date, minimal published accounts of the medicine and husbandry needs of this family have been documented. It therefore is often presumed that the same techniques of care and handling of the genus Choleopus (two-toed sloths) can be applied; however, these taxa demonstrate substantial differences in natural history despite their phenotypic similarities (Montgomery and Sunquist [1978]; Edmund [1979]; Montgomery et al. [1985]). Historically, three-toed sloths have presented poor maintenance records in captivity, rarely exceeding captive lifespans of more than 1 month. With accommodations for their unique needs, it is a species that can be maintained more successfully in captivity with application of established care techniques from a successful collection. Zoo Biol 24: 557-568, 2005.

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Activity Patterns and Rates of Movement of Two-Toed and Three-Toed Sloths (Choloepus hoffmanni and Bradypus infuscatus)

Cited by 87 publications

References 10 publications

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

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

Sleep in the Rock Hyrax, <i>Procavia capensis</i>

Captive health and husbandry of the Bradypodidae

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