Two-Toed Sloth

Lifestyle

Sloths are nocturnal and spend almost all their time hanging upside-down from tree branches, looking like a bunch of dead leaves. They maintain their grip with three-inch sharp claws that dig into tree bark. Sloths can eat, sleep, mate and even give birth in this position! When they do move, they do so very slowly. If a predator approaches, however, they can quickly strike out using their sharp claws and teeth. Sloths can swim and walk, but are most comfortable climbing and hanging. Two-toed sloth females tend to gather in groups, but males hang alone.

Food

The two-toed sloth eats tender leaves, twigs and fruits.

Life Cycle

A female sloth gives birth to one young who uses its claws to cling to its mother’s abdomen. They are able to hang upside-down independently of their mother by around 3 weeks old. Sloths reach maturity by 5 years old and can live at least 30 years in captivity.

Population Status & Threats

The two-toed sloth is considered a species of least concern because it has a large, widespread population that is not threatened with a serious decline. The main threat to these slow, gentle creatures, however, is deforestation. They are not fast enough to flee to safety when trees are chopped down—a major threat to the wildlife of South and Central American rain forests.

WCS Conservation Efforts

WCS has been working in South America’s tropical forests since 1916, when it developed a biological station in Guiana. Our activities in the region have spawned several protected areas, including landscapes in the Amazon. WCS established the Amazon-Andes Conservation Program in 2003 to protect the region’s many unique species.

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