SLOTH
Sloths arearboreals mamals noted for slowness of movement and for spending most of their lives hanging upside down in the trees of the tropical rainforest of south america and centre america. The six species are in two families: two toed sloth and three toed sloth. Despite this traditional naming, all sloths actually have three toes on each rear limb, although two-toed sloths have two digits on each forelimb.
kingdom : animalia
phylum : chordataclass : mammalia
order : pilosa
suborder : Folivora
family :Bradypodidae
Genus : Bradypus
The sloth is so named because of its very low metabolism and deliberate movements, sloth being related to the word slow. This supports their low-energy diet of leaves and avoids detection by predatory hawks and cats that hunt by sight.
Sloths are almost helpless on the ground but are able to swim.The shaggy coat has grooved hair that is host to symbiotic green algae which camouflages the animal in the trees and provides it nutrients. The algae also nourishes sloth moths, some species of which exist solely on sloths
.They are classified in the order Pilosa along with the anteaters. Extinct sloth species include many megafaunal ground sloths, some of which attained the size of elephants, as well as marine sloths.
.They are classified in the order Pilosa along with the anteaters. Extinct sloth species include many megafaunal ground sloths, some of which attained the size of elephants, as well as marine sloths.
For starters, both the two-toed and three-toed sloths belong to the order Pilosa and thrive in the rainforest. These adorable and slow-moving mammals both prefer the higher reaches of the trees, where they are safe from the predators at lower heights. In fact, they only come down to the forest floor once a week to defecate. Sloths feed primarily on leaves but will also sometimes eat fruits and insects. Their digestive system can take up to a month to break down the foliage that they consume, which is one of the reasons they sleep so much. They have been known to graze the leaves of 50 different types of trees, but the cecropia tree is their absolute favorite.
The four species of three-toed sloths belong to the family Bradypodidae, and the two species of two-toed sloths belong to the family Megalonychidae. The two-toed sloth is more closely related to the extinct and gigantic ground sloth and is mainly nocturnal. It also has similarly sized arms and legs, while the three-toed sloth’s arms are longer than its back legs. The two-toed sloth has bigger eyes and a shaggier, often lighter coat. The three-toed sloth has distinctive black markings like a bandit around its eyes
Otherwise, the two sloth species are so different that they even have a different number of neck vertebrates and ribs.
The best advice for finding a sloth in the woods is to slow down and look up … you might just get lucky enough to see an irresistibly cute face smiling down at you.
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