Sloth love

Living doll - if cute could kill, the sloths at the Aviaros del Caribe orphanage would make a formidable army

I’ve travelled thousands of miles to meet an animal I first saw on youtube. I’m not generally a fan of cute LOL viral funnies but Taz, a very itchy baby sloth, was different. She looked like a miniature hairy Yoda and possessed Jedi-strength comic powers, reducing the grown men who made the video to giggling fools (their helpless laughter is almost as funny as the scratchy sloth - watch below).

A bit of googling revealed a secret subculture of silly sloth videos, all filmed at the world's only sloth sanctuary in Costa Rica, which just happened to be looking for volunteers. I had to go.

 

 

 

Much like junkies, baby sloths spend most of their time nodding off or scratching but would never steal your wallet

I've always been a fan of sloths. They're wonderfully freaky, yet perfectly adapted to their slow arboreal lifestyle. Impressively camouflaged courtesy of their mottled green fur - a miniature eco-system which harbours two species of algae, numerous insects and a moth which refuses to live anywhere else. Their nerves have even evolved to react slower so they don't flinch at loud noises - there's no point saying boo to a sloth - surely making them nature's most chilled-out animals.

Boo! Blame it on the metabolism...two thirds of a sloth's body weight can be taken up by it's stomach contents which take up to a month to digest.

They have very few natural predators and the only time they're vulnerable is when they leave the trees once a week and descend to the ground to poo. This behaviour has befuddled scientists for many years. One of the theories is that their solitary lifestyle affords few chances to hook up with the opposite sex and these toilet stops are a good way to meet other sloths. Very George Michael.

 

Why did the sloth cross the road? To escape the stupid American tourist with the video camera, who went on to post this tragi-comedy video of a sloth learning the highway code the hard way. Why they didn't put down the camera and help the poor animal is a mystery.

 

 

But evolution didn't prepare sloths for the power lines and roads which now crisscross Costa Rica's jungles. Individuals that have been zapped by electricity or run over, wind up here at the Aviaros del Caribe sanctuary where they're cared for by the legendary sloth whisperer Judy Arroyo and her staff. 

 

Sloths sleep up to 18 hours a day

The sloths at the sanctuary don't disappoint and are just as adorable as the video suggests. There are two species here: the two-toed sloths are the ones that look like the result of a crazy hybridisation experiment between a wookie and and a pig, and the three-toed which have the medieval haircut and enigmatic smile. 

Three-toed sloth 

 

Two-toed sloth

Regular readers will wonder what I'm doing writing about a sloth sanctuary - this blog is about my adventures in Latin America, trying to find out how to save the world's amphibians. Well, I've realised that frogs have a bit of PR problem and are not as popular as they deserve to be given how diverse, funny and amazing they are. So I've decided to pimp out the sloths to try and save the frogs.

This little guy I found in Peru is easily as cute as a baby sloth and so much more in need of your love

Such is the viral power of the baby sloth, I decided to make my own super cute sloth video to lure people to my blog to discover how cute frogs are and how much they need our help. I released it a few days ago and sure enough it's gone viral. Here is my video - "Meet the sloths":

 

 

 

 

 

 

So for all the LOL baby sloth fans that have read this far - take a moment to think about the frogs. These cuddly sloths are not an endangered species but the world's frogs are dying out at an alarming rate. Like the plot of a bad sci-fi movie, forty percent are going extinct thanks to a deadly fungus that's sweeping the planet. It's the biggest extinction crisis since the dinosaurs were wiped off the planet but not enough people care as it involves amphibians and not LOL furry cuties like sloths or pandas. You can change that.

The Costa Rican red-eyed tree frog is being killed by a deadly fungus  

So stay tuned to this site, spread the word and let's make the frog's go viral for a change. If you really want to help then you could even make a tiny donation. In return I promise to deliver more baby sloth cute crack to feed your addiction.

It is exhausting being so sweet

There are many things that can be done to help the frogs without having to open your purse. 

1 Don't use pesticides and buy organic. Amphibians are very sensitive to pollution as they breathe through their skin. Atrazine in particular (the world's commonest weedkiller) is doing a top job of damaging frog populations world wide. 

2 Don't eat frogs legs. Ever. Frog farms are cruel and spread disease. 

3 Don't buy wild caught frogs. The illegal pet trade is devastating wild populations and also spreads disease. 

Comments

[orjin krem]

Cute overloaded. I want that frog!!

[Andy]

article that appeared good enough to be read so that adds to knowledge when reading

[David]

wow great i have read many articles about this topic and everytime i learn something new i dont think it will ever stop always new info , Thanks for all of your hard work!

[orjin krem]

I went to this sanctuary years ago with a woman who happened to be staying at the same hostel as me. She went insane and started yelling at the people who run this place. It was horrible. We had just made it through the infirmary where they care for the injured sloths and she assumed that is where they kept the healthy ones and started screaming about they way they were treated. It was insane, she would not listen to anyone and just started yelling. We got thrown out before making it to the area where all the healthy sloths hang out. So i never got to see stuff like this. So sad!

[dugi's guide]

wow great i have read many articles about this topic and everytime i learn something new i dont think it will ever stop always new info , Thanks for all of your hard work!

[Robin Woods]

Nice to see Chancellor Spock on your show.

[rahul]

nice post,excellent blog,nice work done

[ghd]

The frog looks very cute!

[Ken]

Nice!
Can I help? I have the time.

Ken

[Letha Hadady]

Hi Lucy

Just getting to know your wonderful photos and writing. Do you have videos?
Will recommend your work at my website www.asianhealthsecrets.com

all best wishes, Letha

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[Meghan]

Oh mah gaaaaawd. Cutest little things ever.

[Genevieve]

Did I find this site because of the sloth video? Yes, but I am going to read it because of the frogs :) So 12/09 I guess is where I start

[Amphibian Avenger]

Thank you for your comment Tina. Your question as to whether they intend to release the sloths back into the wild is a very appropriate and the first thing I asked. The good news is this year Judy will be working with a British biologist on a release programme, tagging the sloths with a new form of GPS so that their progress in the wild can be monitored. It is a very exciting prospect for the sanctuary and one I will be watching with great interest.

[Tina]

I am looking into this frog thing... I'd never even heard of it until now. O_O As others have said your scheme is working.

But a question about the sloths (if you would). Do the kind humans who run the hospital ever plan to release the sloths back into their habitat after they're healed, or do they mostly just keep them like pets?
Just curious, not judging... well overmuch, anyway. Mostly I'm curuious.

[Leia]

We've fallen in love with your sloth video. Its so sweet. I'm eleven and i think your videos are great.

[Mel]

I'm absolutely shocked by the behaviour of those tourists filming the sloth crossing the road. Human cruelty starts there.

[Helen]

Ok, you've gotten people here - now tell them how to save the frogs!

[Sally Wren]

Hi Lucy - obviously the amphibians are my priority (always) but I was doing a bit of sloth research yesterday and found this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EN1Ws0JSd2U

I never knew sloths could swim!! Amazing!

And if you're in the mood for it, you could try the pimped up version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gAi5vuAzzJI

[Sonia]

I think this is my favourite blog post in the entire blogosphere!

[medea]

loving the frogs. PArticularly the cute eyelash batting red eyed tree frog. But yeah. The sloths are kinda nice :D

[Yannick]

Sloths are awesome!

[Amphibian Avenger]

Well I'm very happy indeed that so many of you want to help.

There are many things that can be done without having to open your purse.

1 Don't use pesticides and buy organic. Amphibians are very sensitive to pollution as they breathe through their skin. Atrazine in particular (the world's commonest weedkiller) is doing a top job of damaging frog populations world wide.
2 Don't eat frogs legs. Ever. Frog farms are cruel and spread disease.
3 Don't buy wild caught frogs. The illegal pet trade is devastating wild populations and also spreads disease.
4 Spread the word and support Save the Frog day on April 29th 2011.

Thanks!

[Sarah]

Okay DEAL. I accept your adorable sloths in exchange for caring about super cute froggies. Especially the red eyed tree frog! I did a report on them in 3rd grade and got an A+ because of my very detailed illustrations. I would be most sad indeed to see the die out - what do we do to help?

[Sarah]

Your scheme totally worked. I came for the sloth, but I'm down with the treefrogs. How do we help (particularly those of us with limited funding)?