For Jade, visiting Costa Rica from Texas, the sighting is enough to bring her to the verge of tears. \u201cThis is the first time I\u2019ve seen a sloth in the wild,\u201d she chokes. \u201cI\u2019ve been dreaming of this for years.\u201d<\/p>\n
A lazy reputation<\/h2>\n
The sloth hasn\u2019t always been viewed with such enthusiasm. Its earliest mention in historical literature was recorded by the Spanish colonialist Oviedo, who declared that the sloth was \u201cthe stupidest animal that can be found in the world\u201d, adding that he had \u201cnever seen such an ugly animal or one that is more useless\u201d. Sloths are also, quite literally, synonymous with laziness no matter which language you\u2019re referring to them in, and they suffer the additional ignominy of sharing their name with the seventh deadly sin.<\/p>\n
![\""A\"](\""https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/23\/2020\/10\/Brown-throated-sloth.-GettyImages-880715650-bc54249.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413"\" "\\"\"A\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>Fast forward to the social media era and the sloth has \u2013 in a rather un-sloth-like fashion \u2013 rapidly become an online sensation.<\/p>\n
Zara Palmer, marketing manager for the Toucan Rescue Ranch, one of Costa Rica\u2019s most respected wildlife rehabilitation centres, calls them \u201cthe new kittens of the internet\u201d and explains how their popularity was key to securing funds while the centre was closed during the pandemic. \u201cIf we post a picture of one of our owls, toucans or even the spider-monkeys, we\u2019ll get maybe a few hundred \u2018likes\u2019. But the sloths? They really blow up.\u201d<\/p>\n Love this? You\u2019ll love these too\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p><\/div> <\/section> Costa Rica is home to two of the six species of sloth \u2013 the Hoffman\u2019s two-toed sloth and the brown-throated three-toed sloth \u2013 and their burgeoning popularity hasn\u2019t gone unnoticed by the Costa Rican government; in July 2021, it was declared that both species had been inaugurated as a new national symbol. This announcement came at a time when Costa Rica was tentatively reopening to tourists following the collapse of international travel during the Covid-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n Long celebrated as the premier destination for eco-conscious holidaymakers due to its world-leading attitudes towards sustainable tourism, the pandemic almost spelt disaster for many of the country\u2019s pioneering, community-led conservation projects that rely so heavily on visitors for their income. Now, Costa Rica\u2019s borders have been flung open and the sloth has found itself at the centre of the tourism board\u2019s marketing campaign to bring back the much-needed tourists.<\/p>\n What, then, has turned the humble sloth from the much-maligned creature of yesteryear into one of the internet\u2019s most beloved animals and the unwitting ambassador for the modern Costa Rican tourism industry?<\/p>\n For some, their appeal lies in precisely that with which Oviedo took issue. Where once sloths were vilified for their apparent laziness, now their languid movements, breezy charm and seemingly carefree attitude have inspired thousands of millennials to pay homage to their \u2018spirit animals\u2019 in the comments sections of the countless viral sloth videos that have flooded TikTok and Instagram. But for zoologist Sam Trull, a lot of this love is based on a fundamental misconception. \u201cThey\u2019re not lazy at all,\u201d she says. \u201cThey\u2019re efficient.\u201d<\/p>\n The secrets to the sloth\u2019s success, says Sam, are its abilities to conserve energy and go undetected, both of which are at the centre of all its characteristics and behaviours, including its slowness. No other mammal has a slower metabolism or less muscle mass than sloths, meaning they can take on fewer calories and don\u2019t have to expend as much energy looking for food.<\/p>\n Their painstaking movements mean they can avoid catching the eye of any potential predators, as does their unique approach to camouflage. The sloth is so sedentary that its long, coarse fur becomes a breeding ground for fungi and algae, which in turn lend the sloth its greenish hue \u2013 perfect for blending in with the rainforest canopy.<\/p>\n But while their slowness might be an essential strategy for survival, sloths can also show a surprising turn of speed when the occasion permits. \u201cWhen they feel threatened, they can bite and slash as fast as any animal,\u201d says Sam. \u201cOne of the main reasons we\u2019re called out for a rescue, other than electrocutions, is dog attacks, which happen when a sloth comes down to defecate. Often it\u2019s the dog that comes off worse from the encounter.\u201d<\/p>\n Pedro Montero, a local conservationist and sloth specialist, adds that far from being an evolutionary anomaly, the sloth is actually one of the most successful examples of natural selection, with a lineage that reaches back tens of millions of years. It had previously been thought that the two types of sloth around today \u2013 the three-toed sloth and the two-toed sloth, both arboreal \u2013 evolved separately from the giant ground sloths that once roamed the Americas.<\/p>\n However, more recent research has shown that both are directly related to the elephant-sized sloths and were in fact part of the same family before a genetic split took place some 20 million years ago. What followed was what scientists call an evolutionary convergence: the two different families of sloth each took to the trees and underwent similar adaptations to their conditions. Despite their shared qualities, the two-toed sloth and the three-toed sloth are, in fact, very distant relatives, each millions of years in the making.<\/p>\n Despite its Darwinian credentials however, the 21st-century sloth is having a tough time contending with challenges that its prehistoric ancestors never had to face.<\/p>\n Costa Rica is deservedly championed as a world leader in conservation \u2013 to date, it\u2019s the only country in the world to have halted, and subsequently reversed, deforestation. But it hasn\u2019t been able to completely prevent humans from encroaching on the sloth\u2019s habitat.<\/p>\n The main threat comes from the overhead power lines that criss-cross the roads that cut through the sloth\u2019s rainforest home. \u201cSloths will always take the easiest route,\u201d says Zara, \u201cand they can\u2019t tell the difference between a vine and a power cable.\u201d Most of the sloths undergoing rehabilitation at the Toucan Rescue Ranch have been orphaned while being carried along the powerlines by their mothers, or have been electrocuted themselves. These sloths are the lucky ones; the vast majority are killed instantly and the road through the coastal rainforest from Manuel Antonio to Uvita is littered with the corpses of those that never made it to the other side.<\/p>\n Work is being done to try and protect sloths from the threat of electrocution. Campaigns have been started to call for exposed overhead electrical wires to be fitted with proper rubber insulation, while non-invasive rope bridges \u2013 ironically named \u2018speedways\u2019 \u2013 have been built in the treetops to provide sloths with a safer route between different parts of the forest. Nevertheless, it has been impossible to prevent sloths from taking to the powerlines altogether and the role of rescue centres like the Toucan Rescue Ranch in rehabilitating and rewilding the constant stream of injured arrivals has never been more important.<\/p>\n Early attempts to rehabilitate and release rescued sloths in Costa Rica were far from productive. Research on the physiology and behaviour of these mysterious mammals was limited and despite the well-meaning effort that was put into training them for life in the forest, releasing recovered sloths back into the wild proved to be a death sentence.<\/p>\n The situation seemed hopeless; as Sam puts it, \u201cThe conclusion that researchers drew was that sloths were basically too dumb to learn how to be sloths.\u201d This all changed when Sam co-founded the Sloth Institute, a Costa Rican-based non-profit that placed the studying of sloths at the core of its conservation mission. Thousands of hours spent meticulously observing sloths in their natural habitat to monitor their behaviours and eating patterns allowed Sam and her team to design a rewilding \u2018boot camp\u2019 for orphaned and injured individuals, which has enjoyed extraordinary success. Thanks to the Sloth Institute and its partners, hundreds of rescued and rehabilitated sloths in Costa Rica have been able to thrive on their return to the rainforest.<\/p>\n Sam\u2019s detailed approach to tracking sloths post-release has also put the Sloth Institute on the cutting edge of sloth research and has led to some interesting discoveries. She refers to the example of Mr Valentine, a sloth that was electrocuted on Valentine\u2019s Day 2020 while climbing across an overhead power cable. He recovered well and was released several kilometres away from where his accident took place.<\/span><\/p>\n In March the following year, the Sloth Institute was called out to rescue another sloth who had been electrocuted by the same power cable. They identified the sloth by his microchip as the very same Mr Valentine who had been injured there the year before. \u201cNot only had he made it all the way back to where we\u2019d originally rescued him, but he was also electrocuted at the same time of year,\u201d says Sam. \u201cThis shows us how amazing sloths\u2019 spatial memory capabilities can be. It tells us they probably travel to the same forests every season based on food availability.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n Mr Valentine has since made another full recovery and has been released even further away from his favourite power cable. \u201cLet\u2019s see next February if we see him again,\u201d jokes Sam.<\/span><\/p>\n Mr Valentine\u2019s story highlights the uphill battle that Costa Rica\u2019s sloth rescue centres are facing to protect the animals. In one day, the Sloth Institute might release one sloth and receive a call to take in two more. As Sam puts it, \u201cIt\u2019s like putting a band-aid on an artery that\u2019s bleeding out.\u201d<\/p>\n But there is cause for optimism. With the country\u2019s borders reopening, the money generated by tourism is starting to trickle back into the conservation projects that protect the environment and its biodiversity.<\/p>\n Sustainability has always been at the heart of Costa Rica\u2019s ecotourism philosophy, and the pandemic has provided the opportunity for hotels and resorts to lean further into this by providing experiences for international guests looking to reconnect with nature after months spent indoors. The Parador Hotel Resort in Manuel Antonio, for example, now employs resident naturalists such as Elias Mora to lead wildlife tours on the property\u2019s grounds in the middle of the coastal rainforest. Howler monkeys, white-faced capuchins and a resplendent variety of tropical birds can all be found roaming the hotel\u2019s forest trails. But the most popular animal? \u201cPeople just love the sloths,\u201d says Elias.<\/p>\n Back on the waterways of Tortuguero, Percy explains to the boatful of tourists exactly why the sloth has been adopted as Costa Rica\u2019s newest national symbol. \u201cOur symbols are important for how we want to represent our country to the world. The sloth represents the spirit of our people. Pura Vida<\/i> [the pure, or simple, life] \u2013 slow down and you\u2019ll achieve more than if you try to rush through life.\u201d This has, after all, been the secret behind the sloth\u2019s success so far.<\/p>\n And now, with its future being safeguarded by organisations like the Sloth Institute and the Toucan Rescue Ranch, the unassuming sloth may well play an important role in shaping the fortunes of Costa Rica as the unlikely poster child for its post-pandemic ecotourism industry.<\/p>\n Social media\u2019s obsession with sloths is something of a double-edged sword. As well as helping raise funds for sloth protection, the demand for close-up encounters with sloths has seen them become one of the world\u2019s most \u2018selfied\u2019 animals. This has fuelled illegal wildlife trafficking in the Central Americas, where mothers are killed so their babies can be used as props for tourists. Most people who pose with sloths are unaware of the cruelty that goes on beyond the scenes, hence Costa Rica launched its #NoAnimalSelfies campaign in 2019 to raise awareness of the issue. Today, holding any wild animal in Costa Rica for the purpose of taking a photograph is illegal.<\/span><\/p>\n The terms \u2018two-toed\u2019 and \u2018three-toed\u2019 for the two families of sloth are misnomers: both types have two toes on their hindlimbs, but different numbers of \u2018fingers\u2019 on their forelimbs. There are other subtle differences between the two sloth species in Costa Rica.<\/span><\/p>\n Doug Loynes<\/strong> is a British writer and wildlife enthusiast based in Brazil. The winner of National Geographic\u2019s 2020 Travel Writing competition, his work on sustainable tourism has featured in a number of publications.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n Headline image: Close-up view of a two-toed sloth. \u00a9 Tane Mahuta\/Getty<\/em><\/p><\/body><\/html>\n By BBC Wildlife Magazine Published: Saturday, 18 December 2021 at 12:00 am Costa Rican naturalist Percy Piedra points to the bough of a cecropia tree drooping over a murky brown river that twists and winds through Tortuguero National Park. Even viewed through his telescope, the animal \u2013 a sloth \u2013 he has spotted is almost […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":137,"template":"","categories":[1],"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"11"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2021\/12\/why-the-sloth-is-instagrams-favourite-animal-scaled.jpg",2560,1627,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2021\/12\/why-the-sloth-is-instagrams-favourite-animal-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2021\/12\/why-the-sloth-is-instagrams-favourite-animal-300x191.jpg",300,191,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2021\/12\/why-the-sloth-is-instagrams-favourite-animal-768x488.jpg",768,488,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2021\/12\/why-the-sloth-is-instagrams-favourite-animal-1024x651.jpg",800,509,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2021\/12\/why-the-sloth-is-instagrams-favourite-animal-1536x976.jpg",1536,976,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2021\/12\/why-the-sloth-is-instagrams-favourite-animal-2048x1302.jpg",2048,1302,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By BBC Wildlife Magazine Published: Saturday, 18 December 2021 at 12:00 am Costa Rican naturalist Percy Piedra points to the bough of a cecropia tree drooping over a murky brown river that twists and winds through Tortuguero National Park. Even viewed through his telescope, the animal \u2013 a sloth \u2013 he has spotted is almost…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/136"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/137"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=136"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=136"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Costa Rica\u2019s national symbol<\/h2>\n
They\u2019re not lazy at all, they\u2019re efficient. <\/blockquote> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n<\/div>
The sloth\u2019s secret to success<\/h2>\n
![\""Hoffmann's\"](\""https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/23\/2020\/10\/Hoffmanns-two-toed-sloth.-GettyImages-1221655490-9c7ca5f.jpg?quality=90&resize=619%2C413"\" "\\"\"Hoffmann's\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>Conservation challenges and the fight for survival<\/h2>\n
Sloths will always take the easiest route, and they can\u2019t tell the difference between a vine and a power cable <\/blockquote> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n<\/div>
![\""Close-up\"](\""https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/23\/2018\/06\/GettyImages-523391885-369e40a.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C394"\" "\\"\"Close-up\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>Mr Valentine\u2019s story<\/h2>\n
#NoAnimalSelfies<\/h2>\n
What\u2019s the difference between two-toed\u2019 and \u2018three-toed\u2019 sloths?<\/h2>\n
Hoffman\u2019s two-toed sloth<\/h3>\n
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>Brown-throated sloth<\/h3>\n
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"