6 Sloth Species
Just 6 species remain, 4 three-fingered sloth species in the Bradypodidae family and 2 species of two-fingered sloth in the Megalonychidae family. Yet the fossil record records over 50 sloth species spread over eight different families! These include the giant ground sloths which could reach over 7 meters in height! Sloths spend most of their time in the treetops—eating, sleeping, even giving birth there. They are able to get most of the water they need from juicy plants that they eat. Sloths’ long claws and short back legs make moving occasional short distances across land challenging.
Sloths are tree-dwelling mammals that live in the rainforests of South and Central America. In this article, which is part of our Rainforest Animals series, we’ll look at the sloth’s life and habitat, and learn where it fits within the rainforest ecosystem. At the end is a list of sloth facts for kids.
Watch the videos further down the page to see sloths in the wild!
Sloth Facts At-A-Glance
- Type of Animal: Mammal
- Order: Pilosa
- Number of Sloth Families: 2. Two-toed sloths (Megalonychidae) & three-toed sloths (Bradypodidae).
- Number of Sloth Species: 6 (see below for descriptions & conservation status)
- Where Found: Rainforests of Central and South America
Sloth Information
Sloths are arboreal (tree-dwelling) mammals that live in the rainforests of South and Central America. They are named after the deadly sin of sloth (which means laziness) because they move extremely slowly.
Sloths move so slowly that algae (plant-like organisms) grow in their fur! This is actually beneficial to sloths, as it gives them a slightly greenish color, helping them to blend in with their surroundings!
Sloths spend most of their lives in the trees, where they hang upside-down from branches and vines. Sloths eat, sleep, mate and even give birth while hanging around in the trees!
Due to the design of their feet and long, curved claws, sloths can hang upside down with little or no effort. This actually makes them a less appealing target for human hunters because even when shot, sloths remain hanging in the trees.
Sloths are mostly nocturnal, and sleep during the day.
6 Species, 2 Families
There are six species of sloth, divided between two families: two-toed sloths (Megalonychidae) and three-toed sloths (Bradypodidae).
You can tell the difference between the two families by counting how many ‘fingers’ they have. Two-toed sloths have two fingers; three-toed sloths have three.
Perhaps they should have been named two and three fingered sloths; both families of sloths have three toes on their hind legs!
Two-toed Sloths (Megalonychidae family)
There are two species of two-toed sloth:
- Linnaeus’s two-toed sloth (Choloepus didactylus) (Conservation status: Least Concern)
- Hoffmann’s two-toed sloth (Choloepus hoffmanni) (Conservation status: Least Concern)
Two-toed sloths are slightly larger and faster-moving than three-toed sloths. They are around 60 cm – 70 cm (24 – 28″) in length, and weigh about 6 kg (13 pounds).
Three-Toed Sloths (Bradypodidae family)
There are four living species of three-toed sloth:
- Brown-throated sloth (Bradypus variegatus) (Conservation status: Least Concern)
- Maned sloth (Bradypus torquatus) (Conservation status: Vulnerable)
- Pale-throated sloth (Bradypus tridactylus) (Conservation status: Least Concern)
- Pygmy three-toed sloth (Bradypus pygmaeus) (Conservation status: Critically Endangered)
Three-toed sloths are smaller and slower than two-toed sloths. They grow to around 45 cm – 60 cm (18 – 24″) in length and weigh around 4 kg (9 pounds). Although their tails are longer than those of the two-toed sloths, they are still quite short, reaching 6–7 cm (2–3 in) in length.
Sloth Video
Watch this video to see a sloth in its natural habitat:
Sloth Facts: What Do Sloths Look Like?
Sloths have fairly small, thin bodies with short tails. Their heads are small and round, with short snouts, small ears, and large eyes surrounded by dark masks. The shape of their mouths gives them a permanent smiling expression!
Sloths have long, curved claws. These can grow to be up to 3 – 4 inches (8 – 10 cm) long. Sloths use their claws to climb trees and to hook themselves onto branches.
The long limbs and claws of a sloth are designed for hanging and climbing, not for walking on the ground. Sloths have great difficulty getting around when on the floor, as this video shows …
A Living Habitat!
The sloth’s long, shaggy hair is home to algae, small plants and bugs such as moths and beetles. This is due to a combination of the sloth’s slow speed and the warm, damp climate of the rainforest.
Sometimes the sloth will even lick algae and plants off of its fur as a snack!
What Do Sloths Eat?
Sloths are folivores (specialist leaf-eaters), and also eat buds and shoots. Their bodies and lifestyles reflect their diet. Leaves contain very little energy and are also low in nutrients. As a result, sloths have large and complex stomachs, which contain bacteria that break down the leaves.
It can take a sloth a month to completely digest a meal! Sloths climb down from the trees in order to urinate and defecate (poop!) only about once a week. The contents of a sloth’s stomach account for as much as two-thirds of its body weight.
Because leaves contain very little energy, sloths have a low metabolism (the rate at which energy is used by an organism).
Two-toed sloths have been observed eating insects, lizards and birds in addition to plant matter.
How Fast (Slow?!?) Is A Sloth?
Sloths move extremely slowly, only managing to cover about 6 – 8 feet (1.8 – 2.4 meters) per minute.
As a (not very scientific) comparison, walking at your normal speed you’d probably be moving at about 275 feet (84 meters) per minute. That’s close to the length of a standard soccer / football pitch.
So even when walking you’re about 39 times faster than a sloth!
Deep Sleepers
Sloths spend most of their time either eating or sleeping. In the wild, sloths sleep between 9 and 15 hours a day.
Can Sloths Swim?
They may not be very good on the ground, but sloths are good swimmers. They use a lazy, doggy-paddle stroke to propel themselves through the water.
Watch the amazing video below to see a sloth swimming:
Keeping Cool
Due to their low metabolism, sloths have the lowest body temperature of any mammal, and can’t shiver to keep warm.
Sloth Predators
Sloths are hunted by several rainforest animals, including jaguars, ocelots, harpy eagles, and green anacondas.
It’s much easier for a predator to spot prey that is moving. Because sloths spend so much time either motionless or moving very slowly, they often avoid detection.
Sloths are very vulnerable when on the ground and tend to spend as little time as possible out of the safety of the trees.
When cornered or feeling threatened, sloths will lash out with their long front claws.
Additional Sloth Facts
- Thousands of years ago, giant sloths roamed North America. These elephant-sized animals became extinct about 10,000 years ago.
- Sloths eat, sleep, and live most of their lives hanging upside down.
- If a sloth feels threatened it might put on a ‘burst of speed’ and travel at 13 ft. (4 m) per minute.
- Sloths are mainly nocturnal, but some are also known to be diurnal (active during the day).
Sloth Activities For Kids
- Think about what you can do to help stop deforestation and save the homes of rainforest animals. Write a short story about what you can to do to help save sloths’ homes.
- Gather some friends for a sloth race! Whoever crosses the finish line last is the winner!
- Draw a picture of a sloth hanging out in the rainforest canopy. Don’t forget to include the leaves, flower buds and twigs that sloths like to eat!
- Check out the Sloth Sanctuary in Costa Rica.
Sloth Facts For Kids Conclusion
We hope that you have enjoyed learning about sloths. They are just one of the many animals who call the rainforest their home. Now you’re a sloth expert, why not find out about more rainforest animals? Visit our Main Rainforest Animals Page to get started!
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Sloths are medium-sized mammals found in the canopy layer of the lowland tropical forest of south and central America: this includes the popular amazon rainforest also known as the “Amazonia”.
Conditions at the rainforest include: heavy amount of precipitation that persist year round, moderate daily temperatures that alternate between 70-90°F, a high relative humidity that overshadows this temperature to make the forest feel much warmer, a speedy rate of decomposition which leaves the bare grounds of the forests throughly siphoned of existing nutrients, and a very high diversity of living organism (plants, animals and planktons) which bestows the Amazonia the title for being the most biologically diverse ecosystem on the planet.
Special mention: Tropical rainforests are also a special dwelling place for unbelievably large sized mosquitoes. These creatures can inflict painful ‘bites’ that if given the natural abilities, they can chew. The amazon rainforest is definitely no home for anything less sturdy than a sloth.
The two extant families of sloths
Modern day sloths exist in two distinct families which include: the two fingered sloth: those possessing two claws on each forelimb, and three fingered sloths: those possessing three fingers on each forelimb.
In this article, we pick up from where most other publications left: that sloths live in the tropical rainforest forest of central and southern america, and give a more detailed breakdown of where each species of sloths occur within this large ecosystem.
Two Toed Sloths
Two toed sloths as mentioned above are members of the sloth group possessing two claws which serves as an extension of their forelimbs.
They are generally sturdier than their three toed counterparts and can be physically distinguished from them by their fast paced nature and relatively larger appearance.
Two toed sloths belong to the family: Megalonychidae and Genus: Choloepus.
They occur in two species namely:
6 Sloth Species Definition
- Linnaeus’s two toed sloth.
- Hoffmann’s two toed sloth.
An alternate but uncommon name for the two toed sloths is ‘unaus’. Below, we describe briefly and identify the habitat location of each species of two toed sloths.
1) Linnaues’s two-toed sloth (Choloepusdidactylus)
Description
Linnaeus’s two toed sloth are medium sized mammals that rival the side of a small dog. They have long shaggy coating, brown in color with a thick soft layer of dense underfur.
The hairs representing the outer part of the coating are grooved longitudinally with green algae residing in them. This gives the animals a greenish tinge that helps camouflage them from felid and bird of prey predators that hunt by sight.
Linnaeus’s two toed sloths have snouts that somewhat resemble those of pigs (an even makes them look like pigs) and are primarily differentiated from their closest brothers from the coloration on their necks. Adults can weigh up to 8 kg and live for up to 30 years or more in captivity. Their mean average lifespan under human care (or in captivity) is around 12 years.
Location
In the canopy layer of the tropical and subtropical forest of Northern south america east of the andes and south to the central amazon basin. Temperatures in this habitat usually averages at 25.2 degrees Celsius.
Map
2) Hoffmann’s two-toed sloth (Choloepushoffmanni)
Description
Hoffmann’s two toed sloths have tan to light brown shade of fur with a much lighter coloring on the face. They weigh equally as much as the Linnaeus’s species and appear physically similar to them; they also have long snout that resemble those of pigs and also makes them look like them.
Location
Distributed between the mature secondary and deciduous rainforest of Central and Southern America from Nicaragua to Peru and western Brazil. The inhabit the canopy layers of these forests.
Map
Three Toed Sloth
Three toed sloths are members of the modern day group of sloth possessing three curved claws serving as an extension of their forelimbs. They are much smaller, less stronger and less sturdier than their cousins: the two toed sloths.
Three toed sloths have a marked coloration on their faces which confers them a perpetually smiling expression all the time.
They have forelimbs that are around 50 percent longer than their hind limbs and have stubby little tails that are more conspicuous than those of the two toed variety and are used for digging scatting holes.
Three toed sloths belong to the family: Bradypodidae and Genus: Bradypus.
They occur in four species namely:
- Brown throated three-toed sloth.
- Pale throated three toed sloth.
- Maned three toed sloth.
- Pygmy three toed sloth.
An alternate name for three toed sloths is ‘ai’ (in Latin America) because of the irritatingly high pitched scream they produce when agitated. Below, we describe briefly and identify the habitat location of each current member of the three toed sloth family.
1) Brown throated three-toed sloth (Bradypusvariegatus)
Description
They form the most common species of three toed sloths. Their sizes range between 2 kg to 4 kg and their lengths between 40 cm to 80 cm.
These species of sloths have rounded heads, blunt noses and inconspicious ears. The color of their fur is greyish-brown and it runs all over the body with a darker brown fur covering their throat area, forehead and sides of the face.
A very dark stripe of fur runs beneath their eye area. Their remaining facial hairs are often much paler. The hairs of three toed sloths are long and groovy with algae usually infesting during the humid atmosphere of the rainy season.
Location
Widespread between Central and Southern america. Areas include from Honduras to northern Argentina.
Map
6 Sloth Species Names
2) Pale-throated three toed sloth (Bradypustridactylus)
Description
Pale throated sloths are very similar in appearance to the brown throated variety. The two species actually diverged into separate groups some 6 million years ago.
Pale throated sloths have pale yellow patches of hair around their throat areas. Their furs and color distribution are somewhat similar in appearance to those of brown throated sloths.
Their range mass is between 3 kg to 5 kg and their length span is usually between 50 cm to 80 cm. Species are sexually dimorphic like the brown and pygmy species with adult males having a large patch in the middle of their backs which lacks guard hairs. The patch reveals the naturally white under fur which sometimes may occasionally be stained bright yellow or orange.
Location
Found primarily in northern South America. Areas (or countries) include: Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, eastern Venezuela and Brazil, north of the amazon river.
Map
3) Maned three toed sloth (Bradypustorquatus)
Description
The maned three toed sloths derives its name from the black mane hair that runs down its neck and over it’s shoulders.
Maned sloths have facial region with organs compacted at the middle. Their pelages are pale brown to grey in color. Maned sloths lack the large patch of hair located in the middle of the back as seen in the other three toed species.
They are therefore physically indistinguishable from their female counterparts. Their range mass is between 4 kg to to 5 kg and length span between 50 cm to 80 cm.
Location
Found primarily in Brazil: in the small atlantic forests on the south eastern Brazil.
Map
4) Pygmy three-toed sloth (Bradypuspygmaeus)
Description
Pygmy sloths are a critically endangered species of sloths that closely resembles the brown throated three toed sloth. They are also known as monk sloth or dwarf sloths.
They are significantly smaller than all the other members of the three toed family. In fact, one research found out that brown throated three toed sloths were on average, 40 percent heavier than the three toed pygmy species. Pygmy sloths have range masses that span between 2 kg to 3.5 kg and length span between 40 cm to 55 cm.
Location
Found primarily in central America: Escudo de Veraguas; caribbean island off the northwestern coast of panama.
Map
Sloths’ adaptations to their habitat
Below are some of the adaptations that sloths have made in order to survive the different challenges they face: from depredation risks to natural and unavoidable occurrences like flood and heightened fall, in their tropical habitat.
- Sloths have an arboreally adapted body mass that allows them to hold onto tree branches for hours on end without getting fatiqued, and also enables them to withstand fall from upto 10 feet.
- Sloths have body furs infested with myriad green algae in order confer them camouflage against raptors and ground predators.
- Sloths body can tolerate the toxic chemical contents derived from eating tropical leaves. This includes a long and exhaustive digestive process that properly breaks down the toxic chemicals and a slow rate of metabolism that carefully regulates their absorption.
- Sloths have teeth secondarily used for biting on their aggressors and sharp claws for clawing at them.
More interesting sloth articles:
Obsessed with sloths? Check out our sloth category to learn more about them:
Reference
Gardner. A. (2020, April 30). Phyllophaga, tree sloth. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/animal/sloth
6 Sloth Species Animals
Cite this Article ” (APA Format)
6 Sloth Species Animal
Bunu. M. (2020, June 15). Sloth Habitat: Where do sloths live? (with map). Retrieved from http://emborawild.com/sloth-habitat/