Pilosa, from Latin pilosa (“hairy”), in reference to the fact that all these species are extremely hairy.

Common names of members

Giant anteater, tamanduas, silky anteaters and sloths.

Distribution

Central and South America.

Size

Size varies: small silky anteater: 35 cm, sloths: 50-70 cm, giant anteater: 180 cm long

Morphology

True anteaters: Their snouts are extended to a great extent, and they have a long, thin tongue covered in sticky saliva from enlarged submaxillary glands. There are no teeth and the mouth is tiny. The third digit of the frontal feet has enormous claws that are used to pry apart termite and ant mounds. The other digits are typically absent or very tiny. The fur is thick and covers the entire body. With the exception of the giant anteater, all species have prehensile tails that are long—in some cases longer than the rest of the body—and clothed in varied degrees of fur.

Sloths: They have long limbs with strong claws for hanging on trees. Their heads are short and flat with big eyes and a short snout. Their ears and tail are very tiny and are hard to observe. Their hair grows in a direction from belly and limbs to the back. Their hair is long and thick and is a growing place for algae and insects.

One of the factors that helps in the characterization of Pilosa is their vertebral joints, which have extra articulations that are unlike other mammals. Also, the ischium of the pelvis is fused to the sacrum of the spine.

Habitat & Ecology

Anteaters: Dry tropical forests, rainforests, grasslands, and savannas.

Sloths: Rainforests.

Diet

Sloth: The omnivorous two-toed sloth consumes a wide variety of foods, including insects, carrion, fruits, leaves, and small lizards, and their range can reach up to 140 hectares. In contrast, three-toed sloths consume mostly leaves from a small number of plants and are virtually exclusively herbivorous.

Anteater: Each species is specialized to feed on a certain kind of insect; tiny species are primarily interested in arboreal insects that live on little branches, while giant species are able to pierce the hard covering of terrestrial insect nests.

Reproduction 

Males and females only meet during mating. Females give birth to 1 offspring per year. The baby will be carried on the mother's back.

Total species known

10

Species in the collection

3

Species in Hong Kong

0

References

- Eisenberg, J. F., Redford, K. H. (1999). Mammals of the Neotropics. 3: The Central neotropics: Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil. University of Chicago Press.