western Brazil, and northern Bolivia. Based on cytochrome c oxidase subunit I sequences, a divergence date of about 7 million years between these populations has been suggested. Two-toed sloths live in the canopies in the forests of the tropical rainforests. They usually tend to be relaxing in the branches of the trees that are intertwined within each other throughout the sheltering treetops. Most of the two-toed sloths activity takes place hanging upside down but when it comes time for urination and defecation they make their way to the ground. These creatures also come to the ground when in need of a new tree to live upon or to discover a new food source. Subspecies The five recognised subspecies of C. hoffmanni are: C. h. hoffmanni, Peters, 1858 – Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama C. h. agustinus, Allen, 1913 – Venezuela, western Colombia, northern Ecuador C. h. capitalis, Allen, 1913 – western Ecuador C. h. juruanus, Lönnberg, 1942 – Brazil, Bolivia, extreme eastern Peru C. h. pallescens, Lönnberg, 1928 – Peru Behavior Two-toed sloths spend most of their time in trees, though they may travel on the ground to move to a new tree. A study of sloths on Barro Colorado Island indicated that the Hoffmann's two-toed sloths there were almost exclusively nocturnal, even though in other locations they are known to be active during day. The authors attributed this in part to competition with the brown-throated sloth. They often move slowly through the canopy for about eight hours each night, and spend much of the day sleeping in tangles of lianas. They move only very slowly, typically at around , although they can move up to 50% faster when excited. They are solitary in the wild, and, aside from mothers with young, it is unusual for two to be found in a tree at the same time. The name "sloth" means "lazy", but the slow movements of this animal are actually an adaptation for surviving on a low-energy diet of leaves. These sloths have half the metabolic rate of a typical mammal of the same size. Sloths have very poor eyesight and hearing, and rely almost entirely on their senses of touch and smell to find food. This species often exhibits exaggerated wobbling of the head. Another trait of this sloth is it often spits when the mouth opens. The saliva often accumulates on the lower lip, giving the creature