Size : 8-25 pounds, up to 2 feet long.

Lifespan : 12 years. Up to 31 years in captivity.

Breeding : Mating Year-round. Gestation 7-10 months. One young per birth.

Habits : Solitary.

Diet : Leaves and fruit, sweet potatoes, kale, and spinach.

    Two-toed sloths are slow moving mammals that have found success living in trees, eating leaves. It spends most of its time hanging upside-down from branches using its claws as anchors. The sloth has a rounded head and flattened face, with small ears hidden in the fur.  It has simple teeth (five upper molars, four lower molars), and it has modified hands and feet which terminate in 3-4 inch long curved claws.  The sloth has a large stomach which accounts for almost a third of its body weight, and contains cellulose-digesting bacteria.  It may take a month or more before a meal is digested.  Another unique feature is the sloth's ability to turn its head 270 degrees.  This allows the sloth to hold its head almost upright, even when upside down.
    Both the two-toed and three-toed sloth occupy exclusive geographic ranges. The two-toed sloth is 25% heavier then the three-toed sloth, and it uses the forest in different ways.  The sloth maintains a low but variable temperature of 86-93 degrees F, which helps it to conserve energy.  The sloth is born above ground weighing 10-14 oz. and will cease nursing at about one month.  It is carried by its mother alone for three to nine months and feeds on a diet of leaves.