Pygmy Three-toed Sloth

Taxobox
name = Pygmy Three-Toed SlothMSW3 Gardner | pages = 100 | id = 11800005]


status = CR
status_system = iucn3.1
status_ref = IUCN2007 | assessors = Samudio, R. & members of the Edentate Specialist Group | year = 2006 | title = Bradypus pygmaeus | id = 61925 | downloaded = 2008-02-01]
trend = down
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Mammalia
ordo = Pilosa
familia = Bradypodidae
genus = "Bradypus"
species = "B. pygmaeus"
binomial = "Bradypus pygmaeus"
binomial_authority = Anderson & Handley 2001

The Pygmy Three-toed Sloth ("Bradypus pygmaeus") is a three-toed sloth. Its habitat is located on the tiny island of Isla Escudo de Veraguas off the coast of Panama. As its name suggests, it is a dwarf of its mainland relatives; it is likely a product of insular dwarfism. It weighs 40% less and is 20% smaller than other three-toed sloths. It is specialized for the mangrove forests surrounding the island and this is the only place it has been seen. The population size of the Pygmy Three-toed Sloth is declining mainly because of poaching.

Population and threats

The exact number of Pygmy Three-toed Sloths is not completely known, although its population is presumably low due to its restricted range and it is estimated that there are only around a few hundred alive.cite web | url = http://www.iucn.org/themes/ssc/redlist2006/portraits_in_red.htm#sloth | title = Portraits in Red | accessdate = 2008-02-01 | work = IUCN Red List] It is listed as critically endangered by the IUCN Red List. The island on which it lives is not inhabitated by humans. However, fishermen who visit the island poach the sloth, and it is an easy target, for it only lives in the mangrove forests by the sea. Also a threat is the development of the island for tourism. Although protected as a wildlife refuge, the enforcement is lax.

References