A baby two-toed sloth was born recently at the Lincoln Park Zoo, but zoo staff don’t know much about it yet because mom is keeping a tight grip.
The sloth was born July 25 to 21-year-old mother Hersey and 32-year-old father Carlos, according to a statement from the North Side zoo. The gender and measurements of the baby, the first born to the pair, haven’t been determined as it is clinging too tightly to its mother.
“The sloth infant appears healthy and is passing critical milestones such as nursing regularly and clinging well to mother,” zoo curator Diane Mulkerin said in the statement.
“Hersey is a first-time mother and is being very attentive to her new young,” she said.
The baby sloth can be seen at the zoo’s Regenstein Small Mammal-Reptile House daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. However, sloths are nocturnal, so typically the baby will be curled up with mom throughout the day, and they become more active toward the evening.
“The sloths often hang out—literally—under the eaves of the thatched roof near the building’s exit,” zoo president Kevin Bell said in a post on the zoo’s website announcing the birth.
Two-toed sloths have large hooked claws that help them hang from treetops. On average, they weigh about 12 pounds and grow to 27 inches in length. They spend nearly all their time hanging upside down in trees.
