International Sloth Day

Many holidays are dedicated to representatives of the animal world of the planet. One of them was established to draw attention to sloths - mammals that live in South and Central America. A distinctive feature of an animal that sleeps 15-20 hours a day is its slowness and leisurely lifestyle. The sloth remains motionless for hours, and if it moves from branch to branch, it does so at a speed of 0.27 km/h. In comparison, snails and turtles are champion sprinters. Since 2010, at the initiative of the AIUNAU Foundation, October 20 is celebrated as International Sloth Day. The animal is not on the verge of extinction. However, the population of 1 of the 6 existing species, the pygmy three-toed sloth (Bradypus pygmaeus), is catastrophically declining due to the deforestation of mangrove forests - the habitat of the animals. Another species of animal is under threat of extinction. Bradypus torquatus, a maned, three-toed sloth living on the island of Escudo de Veraguas in Panama, numbers only 100 individuals. The animals, whose natural enemies are panthers, jaguars and long-tailed cats, are disappearing due to habitat destruction and poaching. The meat and thick fur of sloths are not in demand, although they are sometimes hunted for food. Poachers catch the animals and sell them to exotic pet lovers. Due to their slowness, sloths cannot escape from hunters, so they often become their prey. International Sloth Day is designed to prevent the extinction of unique animals. In honor of International Day, WWF, The Sloth Conservation, Rainforest Alliance and other conservation organizations are raising donations. The funds go towards preserving the rainforests where sloths live. In honor of the holiday, zoos are organizing photo exhibitions dedicated to the herbivorous mammal from the order Incomplete-toothed, which also includes anteaters and armadillos. Zoologists conduct seminars and lectures where they talk about the lifestyle of sloths, voicing interesting facts. In the wild, this furry animal lives no more than 20 years, in the zoo - 30-40 years. The sloth feels good in the water where it swims, reaching a record speed of 4 km/h. Due to the low body temperature, +30...33 °C, the animal’s metabolism is slowed down. The sloth spends a long time talking about the food it eats, leaves, tree lizards and insects, so it descends to the ground to defecate once a week. The rest of the time the animal sleeps in limbo, clasping a branch with its paws or lounging on its back. In honor of International Sloth Day, it is customary not only to visit zoos and make charitable contributions to nature protection funds. The animal’s leisurely lifestyle became the reason for the emergence of a funny tradition. On October 20, all couch potatoes and others take a horizontal position and laze all day for their own pleasure.