Animal Planet :: Mammal Guide -- Tropical Forest

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Brown-Throated Three-Toed Sloth

Commonly mistaken for a primate, sloths are actually more closely related to the armadillo.

They are well known for their slow movement and metabolism, taking up to a month to digest a single meal of their preferred food: the leaves and fruit of trumpetwood.

They are strictly arboreal, wrapping their long curved claws around branches as they move through the canopy to forage for leaves, flowers, and buds. They may be seen hanging from branches or sitting in the forks of trees, descending to the ground only to defecate or to crawl to another tree.

A blue-green algae grows on their hair, providing camouflage.

Their distinctive "aye-aye" cry is heard more frequently during mating season.

The three-toed sloth moves much slower than the its cousin the two-toed sloth (Choloepus didactylus).

All sloths are seriously threatened by large-scale clearing of forests in northern and eastern South America.

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	Name: Brown-Throated Three-Toed Sloth (Bradypus variegatus) Family: Bradypodidae (Three-Toed Sloths) Range: Central America to Argentina Habitat: Evergreen and semi-deciduous forest Diet: Leaves, twigs and fruit, mainly of the trumpetwood Head and Body Length: 20 to 21 inches (50 to 54 cm) Tail Length: 1.5 to 2 inches (4 to 5 cm) Weight: 8 to 9 pounds (3.5 to 4 kg) Life Cycle: Mating year-round; gestation about 150 days, one young born Description: Brown fur with dark forehead; small eyes; round head; long, coarse fur; slender body; arms longer than legs; curved fingers and toes; three long, sharp claws on each limb Conservation Status: Not listed by the IUCN.