Sloth collagen phylogenetics - The living tree sloths Choloepus and Bradypus are the only remaining members of Folivora, a major xenarthran radiation that occupied a wide range of habitats in many parts of the western hemisphere during the Cenozoic, including both continents and the West Indies (Antilles)

The living tree sloths Choloepus and Bradypus are the only remaining members of Folivora, a major xenarthran radiation that occupied a wide range of habitats in many parts of the western hemisphere during the Cenozoic, including both continents and the West Indies (Antilles). To date, molecular evidence has played only a minor role in folivoran systematics, as most recently-extinct species lived in places not conducive to DNA preservation. Here we utilize collagen sequence information to assess the relationships of tree sloths to a large sample (13 species) of extinct Quaternary folivorans.