SLOTHS 



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West African lemur, which also lives exclusively in trees. In this position they 

 are able to fast for a month or longer. This sluggishness probably accounts also 

 for their immunity to large doses of poison, and their power of resistance in the 

 case of serious wounds, for they are not able to escape poisonous snakes, or beasts- 

 of-prey. Their favourite haunts are the cecropia trees so abundant in the South 

 American forests, whose large leaves and milky sap afford them abundant food. They 

 seldom leave their own tree, and 

 on account of the moisture in its 

 leaves, twigs, and fruit, which 

 form almost exclusively their nutri- 

 ment, these animals need no water, 

 and are thus not compelled to 

 descend to the ground even during 



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a protracted period of drought. 

 Like other vegetable-feeders, sloths 

 are provided with a stomach con- 

 sisting of several compartments so 

 as to get the full benefit of their 



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food. Their extremely long front- 

 legs, which far surpass the hind- 

 legs in this respect, have elongated 

 slender feet and strong hook-like 

 claws enclosed, as in a glove, by 

 a common skin. Owing to the 

 strength of their claws, these 

 claspers serve their purpose so well 

 that sloths when feeding hang 

 from branches with their backs 

 downwards, and even when killed 

 by a shot do not drop to the 

 ground until the stiffness of death 

 has relaxed. In accordance with 

 this strange hanging attitude is 



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the flexibility of the neck, which 

 enables them to turn the face com- 

 pletely round. Never very con- 

 spicuous, they are even less so when 

 asleep, for the body is covered 



with long, coarse, somewhat brittle hair of brownish or dull ashy grey colour 

 tinged with green, this green tinge being due to the growth in the grooves of the 

 pithy hair of an alga allied to the green water-weeds of our pools, which, owing to 

 the moist atmosphere of the forests, flourishes luxuriantly. Between the shoulders 

 male sloths show a patch of short under- fur marked with bright brown and orange 

 stripes. Young sloths, which are born completely developed, but with 

 short hair, clasp their mother's neck with their arms and cling to her long hair. 

 The female has two teats, but gives birth only to one young at a time. The 



UNACT. 



