Appearance
Sloths are mammals found in Central and South American rainforests. They are grey and brown, and they have coarse hairs. Three-fingered sloths are around the size of a medium-sized dog, with lengths between 24 - 27 inches. Two-fingered sloths are a little bit bigger than three-fingered ones. They have long limbs and curved claws, which is helpful for their arboreal lifestyle. Their claws range from 3 - 4 inches. There are six species of sloth, with some being referred to as two-toed and some being three-toed. Technically, all sloths are three-toed. Their back limbs have three toes, so the difference in classification is based on their two front limbs. Since the limbs of the sloth can’t support its weight, it is classified as a four-armed, not four-legged animal. So, while sloths are commonly referred to as two or three-toed, they are increasingly called two or three-fingered sloths.Habitat and Diet
Sloths live in rainforests. They spend most of their time hanging upside down from tree canopies. They spend most of their time up high to avoid predators (which include jaguars, harper eagles, and humans). They are harder to reach, and sloths are much more nimble in trees than on the ground. Sloths spend most of their time sleeping, resting, or eating. In the wild, they sleep for up to 10 hours a day, and in captivity, it’s 15-20 hours a day. They live in a habitat that is prone to seasonal flooding, so it’s a good thing sloths can swim well. They can perform the breaststroke easily, and they are naturally buoyant. Two-fingered sloths are omnivores who eat leaves, fruit, insects, and small lizards. Though they mainly eat leaves. Three-fingered sloths are completely reliant on leaves, twigs, and buds for sustenance. The sloths’ long limbs make it easy for them to grab branches of leaves to eat.A diet of leaves is not a nutritious or energy-rich diet. So, sloths extract the most energy from their food as they can. Sloths have a multi-chambered stomach that takes up one-third of their body that helps this purpose. This biology makes them have slow metabolisms, much slower than the average animal of their size. They can spend up to a month (depending on the species) processing one meal. For this reason, they tend to only use the bathroom once a week, which is one of the rare times they come down from their canopies. Their diet is the reason sloths move so slowly. Sloths must save energy by not exerting themselves, and they wound up evolving to move slowly.