NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Linnaeus's Two-toed Sloth
Choloepus didactylus (Linnaeus, 1758)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Linnaeus's Two-toed Sloth at the London Zoo. It is native mainly to northern South America. In context at www.dixpix.ca/Amazon/fauna/mammals/index.html
Dick Culbert from Gibsons, B.C., Canada · CC BY 2.0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 800 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
Linnaeus's two-toed sloth (Choloepus didactylus), also known as the southern two-toed sloth, unau, or Linne's two-toed sloth is a species of sloth from South America, found in Venezuela, Suriname, Guyana, French Guiana, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Brazil north of the Amazon River. There is now evidence suggesting the species' range expands into Bolivia. It's the largest extant sloth species.
Wikipedia contributors, Linnaeus's two-toed sloth; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T11:05:46.696089+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Choloepus didactylus (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Name authority
- (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Common name
- Linnaeus's Two-toed Sloth
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Pilosa
- Family
- Megalonychidae
- Genus
- Choloepus
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classMammalia Linnaeus, 1758
- subclassTheria Parker & Haswell, 1897
- infraclassEutheria Gill, 1872
- orderPilosa Flower, 1883
- suborderFolivora Delsuc, Catzeflis, Stanhope & Douzery, 2001
- familyMegalonychidae Ameghino, 1889
- genusCholoepus Illiger, 1811
- speciesCholoepus didactylus (Linnaeus, 1758)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Choloepus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Hoffmann's Two-toed SlothCholoepus hoffmanni Peters, 1858 | MegalonychidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Choloepus didaetylus Thomas, 1893 Thomas, 1893 | synonym |
| Bradypus kouri Daudin, 1802 Daudin, 1802 | synonym |
| Bradypus curi Link, 1795 Link, 1795 | synonym |
| Bradypus didactylus Linnaeus, 1758 Linnaeus, 1758 | synonym |
| Choloepus florenciae J. A. Allen, 1913 J. A. Allen, 1913 | synonym |
| Choloepus guianensis Fitzinger, 1871 Fitzinger, 1871 | synonym |
| Choloepus hoffmanni florenciae J. A. Allen, 1913 J. A. Allen, 1913 | synonym |
| Choloepus didactylus columbianus Gray, 1871 Gray, 1871 | synonym |
| Choloepus brasiliensis Fitzinger, 1871 Fitzinger, 1871 | synonym |
| Choloepus napensis Lönnberg, 1922 Lönnberg, 1922 | synonym |
| Bradypus unau Link, 1795 Link, 1795 | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=624908 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:5XYGW. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.