International Sloth Day: Sloth facts

ORLANDO, Fla. — Here’s your excuse to sloooooowwww dowwwnnnn this Friday: It’s International Sloth Day.

To celebrate the holiday, we compiled 9 things to know about the sluggish tree-dwellers, according to the World Wildlife Fund.

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1. There are two groups of sloths in the world: Those with two claws on their front limbs and those with three claws on all four of their limbs. In total, six sloth species are found in the Americas, mostly in the tropical rainforests of Central and South America.

2. Everything about sloths is slow-moving, including their digestion. Because of that, sloths eat very little food per day – mainly leaves, fruit and sap – and digestion can sometimes take days or even weeks.

See: Slow down and celebrate International Sloth Day

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sloth LONDON, ENGLAND - MARCH 25: A Two-toed Sloth from Brazil climbs along a pipe in its new home in the living rainforest enclosure at ZSL London Zoo on March 25, 2010 in London, England. Entitled 'Rainforest Life' the large temperature and humidity controlled bio-dome is home to free-roaming monkeys, sloths, tree anteaters and tropical birds. The exhibit, which is opening in the International Year of Biodiversity, will be open to the public from March 27, 2010. (Photo by Oli Scarff/Getty Images) (Oli Scarff)

Read: Rhode Island zoo welcomes baby sloth

3. Sloths spend most of their time hanging motionless or slowly moving between tree branches. They descend to the ground rarely, often only to use the bathroom, which only happens about once a week.

4. Sloths are surprisingly good swimmers. They can swim large distances in a short amount of time when searching for mates or new territory.

5. Their slow-moving nature helps them survive in the wild. Want proof? They’ve been around for 65.5 million years, just before dinosaurs disappeared.

Read: Cincinnati Zoo sloth pregnant, expecting baby next summer

6. Sloths’ ancestors include giant elephant and pony-sized land sloths that once roamed the earth. Both were found in Central and South America around 10,000 years ago.

7. Sloths’ fur is a living, breathing microcosm of different organisms, from microbes and insects to fungi and algae.

8. Their algae-covered fur helps camouflage them from predators, including eagles, ocelots and jaguars.

Read: Video captures child crashing into sloth on zip line

9. The average lifespan of a sloth in the wild is around 20 years. But in captivity, a Hoffman’s two-toed sloth named Miss C lived to be 43 years old.

Video: Brevard Zoo welcomes third baby sloth in its history The little one was born under the zoo’s care on April 8 to parents 15-year-old mother Sammy and 18-year-old father Dustin. (Sarah Wilson, WFTV.com)

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