The sloth is the world's slowest animal . It's so slow that it's fur grows algae ! The algae can be useful though, because it gives it a greenish tint that help it camouflage the tree's in it's rain forest home. There are both two-toed and three-toed sloths, but only the three-toed are endangered. All sloths spend most of their time hanging from the branches of trees. When sloths are awake, they basically remain motionless. Sloths spend a lot of their time sleeping, some times 15-20 hours a day. Even then, they remain in the tree tops. Sloths even mate and give birth in the trees ! On land, sloths' powerless hind legs are no help. They must use their front claws to dig into the earth and pull themselves along. Sloths have an extra vertebrae that allows them to turn their head 270.
Click HERE to watch a video of a sloth attempting to cross the road
Click HERE to watch a video of a sloth attempting to cross the road
It is hard to help this animal because we do not yet know exactly why is is endangered. We do know that the loss of their home has contributed a lot though. The destruction of the rain forest is promoting extinction. Also, poachers hunt them to for traditional trade and use their fur. On top of that, sloth's are VERY slow. Therefore, it is hard for them to escape predators.
Like any other tropical animal, the three-toed sloth is vital to the future of the rain forest .There are several conservation measure being taken to help protect the sloths. In the Atlantic Forest, the WWF is working to protect the habitat of the Maned three-toed sloth. The US agency for international development is working on providing alternatives to slash and burn agroforestry. Conservation International is trying to get areas that would otherwise clear the forests, to focus on ecotourism. In the past, we've tried to capture and breed the animals, but they never lasted more than a couple moths outside of their natural habitat. So, most of our efforts now are based on saving the place they call home : the forest.