#千万IP创科普# Still complaining about sloths being slow? They are actually good swimmers.

A slow sloth is a good swimmer?

Is this true? Yes.

Small archive

Name: Sloth

Body length: 0.6-0.8 meters, tail length 0.03-0.04 meters

Weight: Generally 4-7 kg, females are slightly larger than males

Class: Chordata, Mammalia, Phalarope, Slothidae, with two genera: three-toed sloth and two-toed sloth

Charming photos:

Appearance: Sloths are slightly monkey-like in shape, slow in movement, and often hang upside down on branches for hours without moving, hence the name sloth. They have small round heads, small ears that are hidden in their fur, small teeth without enamel, fluffy fur, thick skin to prevent scratching and biting, sharp claws that can attack, short tails, and gray-brown bodies that are not easily spotted.

Living habits: Sloths live in trees all year round, hanging upside down on branches with their claws and moving on trees to prevent attacks from carnivores. They usually feed on leaves, buds and fruits. When they are full, they hang upside down on branches to take a nap. It can be said that they regard trees as their home. They can endure hunger for more than a month. When they have to move, their movements are also lazy and extremely slow. When facing danger, their escape speed is less than 0.2 meters per second.

Growth and reproduction: Most sloth species breed in spring. The gestation period varies by species, from 4 to 6 months or 9 months. Each baby is born with one cub. The life span is generally 12 years. Sloths have a keen sense of smell, but their vision and hearing are not very developed. They are nocturnal and feed on leaves and fruits. Sloths are extremely lazy mammals. They are too lazy to do anything, even too lazy to eat, and can endure hunger for a month. Their natural enemies are pythons and birds of prey.

Distribution: Sloths are mainly distributed in tropical forests of Latin America, and are also distributed in Brazil, Guyana, Ecuador, Peru, Panama, Nicaragua and the West Indies. The dwarf three-toed sloth is listed as endangered (CR) on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The mane three-toed sloth is listed as vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

Weird story:

Sloths are the slowest moving mammals. They live a very slow life, eating mainly low-calorie leaves, which take hours to digest. Sloths spend most of their lives in trees, where they can hang, slowly chewing their food, and sleeping most of the time. Sloths stay still as long as possible, so much so that algae often grows on their hair, making them the only mammals with plants growing on their bodies.

Although the actions of sloths may seem careless, they are actually carefully planned. They move slower on the ground than turtles, usually only about 0.2 meters per second, and an average of 1 meter per day. Due to the incomplete development of the body temperature regulation function, the digestive function of sloths is affected, and it takes an average of 16 days for food to be digested and absorbed through the stomach and intestines. The metabolism brought about by slow movements just maintains the balance of energy income and expenditure.

Although they are not good at walking on land, the slow sloths are good swimmers in the water? True or false? True. Sloths have amazing swimming abilities, and can swim at speeds of nearly 1 meter per second, due to their unique swimming skills and body structure that are highly adapted to the aquatic environment. Sloths have long and powerful claws that are well suited for paddling, and their fur is dense enough to generate enough buoyancy to help them float easily. In the water, sloths are able to keep their eyes and noses above the water while using their long claws to perform efficient paddling movements. This efficient swimming method not only allows sloths to quickly escape potential dangers, but also allows them to travel for hours in rivers or lakes to find new habitats.

So, while sloths are slow and clumsy on the ground, they are truly amazing in the water. This unique ability shows the sloths’ adaptability and survival strategy in nature.