![]() ![]() Previous studies have focused sloth activity in undisturbed forests. “With less competition for food and fewer predators these animals developed a more synchronous pattern of activity.” “These environmental disturbances are in no way an ideal scenario from a conservation perspective but the results - fewer predators, easier access to primary food sources - clearly had a positive impact based on our observations,” said Giles Duffield, associate professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Notre Dame, and a co-author of the study. While deforestation, development, intentional fire setting and nighttime hunting have been detrimental to various tree and animal species, brown-throated three-toed sloths may benefit in shifting from nocturnal tendencies to becoming primarily daytime active. The results, published in the journal Mammalian Biology, present a unique take on the impact of human activity in the area. Researchers recorded the sloths’ behaviors and circadian rhythm during the course of 29 days. The study was conducted in a highly disturbed section of the Atlantic forest, in Northeastern Brazil. Scientists studying brown-throated three-toed sloths, where predators are extinct and food is more accessible, have found that the animals adapt to have a primarily diurnal, or daytime, schedule. ![]()
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