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Life in the Canopy |
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A sloth has long brown or grey hair that helps it to blend in with it's surroundings. This helps to protect it from predators.. During the rainy season a sloth may have additional camouflage! It can be covered with a coat of blue-green algae. A sloth can grow to a length of between one and a half and two and a half feet over a two and a half year span. The sloth's ancestor, which lived before the last ice age, the Giant Ground Sloth could reach the size of a modern elephant. Sloths eat leaves and buds. The two-toed sloth eat twigs, fruits, and small animals. Sloths have a slow metabolism, which means they digest their food slowly. This allows them to live on little food. A sloth's teeth never stop growing, so they wear down their teeth as they eat. A sloth does not drink water! They get their water form eating juicy leaves and licking dewdrops. A sloth can defend itself with its sharp claws. It's main form of protection is it's ability to hide using it's camouflage. A sloth's predators are people, large snakes, jaguars, and ocelots. They are also hunted by harpy and other birds. Sloths move very slowly when they are on the ground, but they are very good swimmers. A sloth spends an average of sleeping upside down. They also eat, mate, and give birth upside down. Because a sloth spends most of it's life upside down, many of their internal organs are in different positions from other mammals. A sloth will not go to the ground very often, they will do so to change trees or get food. When they are on the ground they move very slowly. A sloth lives on average thirty to forty years.
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