One of the slowest animals on Earth, the misunderstood Three-Toed Sloth is not lazy, but merely accustomed to life on the tree tops, spending almost all of its adult life in the trees. Some sloths even retain their grip to a branch long after their dead! They eat, sleep, mate and give birth while high up in the forest canopy, and are equipped with huge claws that allow them to remain suspended in the trees for quite a while. While their enormous “toes” and long gangly arms make it extremely difficult for life on land, they are surprisingly good swimmers, sometimes even falling from trees and into water.

         Able to turn their heads almost 270 degrees and emit a high pitched cry, these small, dog-sized creatures are some of the most unique animals in the Amazon. They grow to weigh about 10 pounds. Their diet consists of tough plants and leaves that their complex stomach can easily digest. Its body temperature drops with the weather around it, making it seem more like a reptile than a mammal. Sloths can also coexist with one another in a large or small area within the canopy, due to their lack of aggressiveness. They mark their territory with anal glands and dung, basically leaving behind the scent of their droppings. Their natural big cat predators find it difficult to catch an easy Sloth meal while they are up in the treetops, but the sloths are sometimes snatched from their branch by a passing Harpy Eagle.

         Famous for their incredible speed of 0.15 mph, these animals are so slow, their fur coat provides homes to some insects and even algae! Their incredible speed also makes it difficult for them to find a new home. Their forest canopy habitat is being constantly cut down due to deforestation and this slow-moving species is in danger of becoming extinct.