Search results
The three-toed or three-fingered sloths are arboreal neotropical mammals. [2] They are the only members of the genus Bradypus (meaning "slow-footed") and the family Bradypodidae. The five living species of three-toed sloths are the brown-throated sloth, the maned sloth, the pale-throated sloth, the southern maned sloth, and the pygmy three-toed ...
- Life in the Trees. All sloths are built for life in the treetops. They spend nearly all of their time aloft, hanging from branches with a powerful grip aided by their long claws.
- Life on Land. On land, sloths' weak hind legs provide no power and their long claws are a hindrance. They must dig into the earth with their front claws and use their strong front legs to pull themselves along, dragging their bellies across the ground.
- Characteristics. The three-toed sloth emits a long, high-pitched call that echoes through the forests as “ahh-eeee.” Because of this cry these sloths are sometimes called ais (pronounced “eyes”).
Learn about the three toed sloth, the world's slowest mammal that lives in the trees of South and Central America. Discover its adaptations, diet, behavior, threats and more.
Learn about the three-toed sloth, a tree-dwelling mammal with a smiling face and a slow lifestyle. Find out its habitat, diet, behavior, and classification in this article from Britannica.
- What kind of animal is a sloth?Sloths are mammals. They are part of the order Pilosa, which is also home to anteaters. Together with armadillos, sloths and anteaters form the mag...
- How many types of sloths are there?A total of five species of sloths exist: the pygmy three-toed sloth, the maned sloth, the pale-throated three-toed sloth, the brown-throated three-...
- Where do sloths live?Sloths live in the lowland tropical areas of South and Central America. They spend most of their life in the forest canopy. Two-toed sloths tend to...
- What do sloths eat?Sloths are omnivores. Because they spend most of their time in trees, they like to munch on leaves, twigs, flowers, and other foliage, though some...
- Why are sloths so slow?Sloths are slow because of their diet and metabolic rate. They eat a low-calorie diet consisting exclusively of plants, and they metabolize at a ra...
The Bradypus are tree-dwelling omnivores that rely on the thick tree canopies for their food. Three-toed sloth's diets consist of 99.4& leaves with 67.2% being young leaves. Studies of stomach contents and direct feeding observations display at least 51 different plant species that they consume.
Learn about the three-toed sloth, one of the six species of sloths that live in the tropical rain forests of Central and South America. Find out why they matter, what threats they face, and what WWF is doing to protect them and their habitats.
