Brown-throated three-toed sloth
(Bradypus variegatus)
Facts
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IUCN LEAST CONCERN (LC)
Facts about this animal
Sloths are very unusual animals with long limbs, short bodies and stumpy tails, that leave upside down in trees, moving slowly and little. To accommodate this lifestyle, the fur grows from the belly toward the back, and the head can rotate over 90 degrees.
The three-toed sloth has five simple, peglike teeth on each side of the upper jaw, and four teeth in the lower. Thre are no true canines or incisors. The feet have no free toes but three long curved claws that form a hook by which the sloth can hang passively from a branch, or clasp obects against the palms with a pincerlike grip.
Three-toed sloths may be active at day and night. They usually feed high in the canopy where they are difficult to spot. About once a week they descend to the ground to defecate: while clinging to a tree trunk they dig a hole, defecate in it, and cover it over.
Three-toed sloths give birth to one single young, which spends its first 6-9 months clinging to its mother.
Did you know?
that all sloths have three toes, even two-toed sloths! However, they have only two front claws whereas the three-toed sloth has three of these long, hook-shaped claws.
| Factsheet | |
|---|---|
| Class | MAMMALIA |
| Order | XENARTHRA (PILOSA) |
| Suborder | FOLIVORA (TARDIGRADA |
| Family | BRADYPODIDAE |
| Name (Scientific) | Bradypus variegatus |
| Name (English) | Brown-throated three-toed sloth |
| Name (French) | Paresseux à gorge brune |
| Name (German) | Braunkehl-Faultier |
| Name (Spanish) | Perezosos de tres dedos, Perezoso grisaceo |
| Local names | Brazil: Preguiça-de-bentinho |
| CITES Status | Appendix II |
| CMS Status | Not listed |
Photo Copyright by
Stefan Taube
Distribution
| Distribution | |
|---|---|
| Range | From Honduras to North Argentina, withouth north-eastern regions of South America. |
| Habitat | Tropical Rainforest |
| Wild population | Unknown, but widespread and abundant (Red List IUCN 2011) |
| Zoo population | 1 reported to ISIS (2007) |
In the Zoo
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How this animal should be transported
For air transport, Container Note 75 of the IATA Live Animals Regulations should be followed.
Find this animal on ZooLex
Photo Copyright by
D. Gordon E. Robertson
Why do zoos keep this animal
The tree-toed sloth is currently not threatened with extinction. It is rarely kept by zoos, although the species is of major educational interest and would be a good ambassador species for its habitat, the threatened neotropical rainforests.
In range countries zoos may keep the species for animal welfare reasons as they may accept caring for injured or orphaned individuals.
How this animal should be kept
Generally, sloths should be kept in pairs. An enclosure for two compatible adults must have a ground surface of at least 16 m² and a height of at least 3 m. The surface has to be increased by 10 % for each additional adult.
The enclosure should be furnished with horizontal and vertical branches for climbing, a lattice on top of the enclosure significantly increases the climbing opportunities.
In cold and temperate climatic zones, sloths should be kept indoors. A room temperature of at least 20 º C should be maintained and humidity should be very high.
The diet of sloths consists of branches in leaf, vegetable, fruit and boiled rice. Drinking water must always be available.
Sloths are suitable animals for mixed rainforest exhibits. They can easily be associated with ground-dwelling animals, such as agoutis or armadillos, with marmosets, tamarins and some of the cebid monkeys, as well as with birds or iguanas.