Fun Facts About The Sloth

The sloth is a tropical mammal that can be found in South and Central America. These peculiar creatures use their long claws to cling to branches whilst they feast on leaves other animals are unable to reach. The sloth has claws that extend 3 to 4 inches which makes walking on the ground extremely difficult so they end up spending most of their time in tall trees instead.

There are two types of sloth the two toed sloth is slightly larger than its three toed cousin though both species share many of the same features. Both are about the size of a medium sized dog and weigh about 8 kilograms.

The modern sloth resides in Central and South America because it enjoys the tall trees that can be found in the rain forest. Sloths curl up into a ball whilst sleep in the fork of a tropical tree. Sloths also like sleeping by hanging from tree branches by their claws.

The life of a sloth mostly revolves around sleeping and eating in their tree homes. The only times these animals leave the trees is to use the bathroom or to take a swim.

Captive sloths sleep anywhere from 15 to 20 hours per day which means they have very little time for socializing. In the wild however sloths sleep roughly the same amount as humans according to research.

Mating habits

The sloth mates and gives birth to their young in the trees. Mating season starts when females begin their mating scream which lets males in the area know they are ready to mate. Males vie for female attention by hanging from branches and pawing at one another. The winner gets the coveted prize of mating with the female.

Sloths only have only one baby at a time and the gestation period for a baby sloth ranges from between five to six months but can extend to as long as 11.5 months for certain species.

Baby sloths are never in a hurry to leave their mother, and cling to the belly for several weeks following birth. Even after this initial period, baby sloths stay by their mother’s side for as long as four years.

Other facts about sloths

The scientific name for the sloth is Bradypus which in Greek means “slow feet”. The sloth is so low that algae grows on its fur. The algae helps the sloth blend into the trees and acts as camouflage against predators.

The sloth is an excellent swimmer and like humans are able to do the breaststroke with relative ease. The sloth only has 25 per cent muscle mass and this means they are unable to shiver when they are cold. If a female gets too cold she will be unable to digest food and if her young continues to nurse during this period she may end up starving to death.