Sloths in the Rainforest Canopy
High up in the rainforest canopy, algae-covered sloths hang upside down, camouflaged from view, digesting young leaves over a period of weeks. They come down from the trees perhaps once a week to void; more often than that will leave them vulnerable to jaguars and other predators. Contrary to popular belief, they don't sleep for most of the day, but it's certainly hard to tell.
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Appearance
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Long, gangling limbs, long claws and a shaggy, pale brown fur coat covered in green algae are the hallmarks of the sloth family. So subtle is their camouflage that you barely see them unless they move. These are gentle, benign creatures unless threatened, when their only defenses are to use their claws to slash and wound or to roll up hedgehoglike into a ball. Their teeth are rudimentary and wear away at the same rate as they grow; sloths retain their primary dentition throughout their lives.
Two- and Three-Toed Sloths
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Hoffman's two-toed sloth carries two claws on each foreleg and three on each hind leg, and weighs in at between 10 and 20 lbs. Its usual habitat is the west, central and northern areas of South America, where it lives a nocturnal existence. The three-toed sloth, however, is diurnal, and inhabits the southern and central regions of South America. The male three-toed sloth is recognized by a patch of bright orange fur on its back, together with a long black stripe. Its weight averages between 8 and 9 lbs.
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Endangered Habitat
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Logging and deforestation are decimating the rain forests of northern and central South America. While sloths still have the security of their particular area, and spend very little time moving from one place to another, they are under threat from predators who themselves are losing their own natural hunting grounds.
Vulnerability to Predators
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Camouflage and extremely slow movement are usually good protection against a sloth's main predators: humans, eagles, jaguars and other big cats. Sloths are at their most vulnerable when they come down to earth to void, usually once a week, and because they cannot move fast, are a sitting target for any predator in the vicinity. Their ability to walk is almost nonexistent, and their only way of moving about at ground level is to drag themselves along by their claws.
Why Sloths Are Slow-Moving
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The sloth's diet is mainly cellulose from the young leaves in the canopy, and some occasional fruit. Digestion can take a month because of the sloth's slow metabolism, and little energy is gained from the diet. Conservation of energy is therefore of great importance in order to avoid an imbalance between energy input and output. The slow-moving nature of the sloth might also be a benefit, in that it protects the sloth from being spotted by predators; sudden movements are more likely to attract attention.
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