Publications Archives - The Sloth Institute

The Amazing Origins of the Avocado

Sam Trull — Fri, 16 Aug 2019 15:00:34 +0000

Ever wondered where the avocado got its start? Well, read on!

The following article was produced by Toucan Rescue Ranch and was originally published in the Tico Times on August 4, 2019. It was written by TSI’s own Pedro Montero.

Slothy Sunday: The Origin of the Avocado

The following article is based on a true-ish story. New data is uncovered constantly by paleontologists, which affects our understanding of the relationship described below.

Millennials everywhere on July 31 were celebrating their favorite fruit… the avocado! And yes, we see you enjoying some of that delicious avocado toast while reading the e-newspaper, as we all do. But have you ever wondered: Where does the avocado get its flavor? Of course not – that’s a weird question. But let me tell you anyway.

Picture this: a forest anywhere between Argentina and Canada, quite a few years ago — thousands or millions depending on where in America you are picturing — our ancestors frolicked outside, mostly because inside had not been invented yet. Suddenly there was a rumble in the trees, and out comes a Lestodon, 2,590 kilograms and around 4.5 meters of gentle sloth giantness. The sloth was sniffing a nearby tree and, standing on its legs, started eating. It was then that our ancestors readied their spears. Little did they know that if instead of killing the animal, they had tasted the fruit, civilization would have jump-started right then and there.

The protagonist of this story is, of course, the ground sloth. They were divided into four families, with several species each. These famously included the Megatherium, one of the largest mammals in history, measuring up to 6 meters and weighing about 4 tons; Thalassocnus, a genus of semi-aquatic sloths with longer tails used for swimming; Megalonyx, named by Thomas Jefferson when the third president of the United States confused the sloth for a giant lion; and the Megalonychidae that might have still been around in Cuba and the Dominican Republic as late as 5,000 years ago. Rumors suggest that even to this day there is still at least a couple of giant sloths following Costa Rican sports teams.

The avocado has been described as an evolutionary anachronism, since the current-day sloths, and any other animal for that matter, are not capable of naturally spreading the seed. Back in the day they could eat an entire avocado and go poop the seed elsewhere, allowing the tree to get to new areas and diminishing the competition. It is logical to infer that the avocados developed their amazing taste to attract the sloths. We repaid this culinary revolution by eating them: There are several instances of fossilized bones that have cuts consistent with stone tools. In White Sands National Monument, New Mexico, there is a fossilized record of a sloth being followed by humans. The prints seem to show the humans stalking the sloth and circling it, which points to a hunting scenario, or at the very least the first recorded instance of a dance-off.

Hunting, alongside changes in the climate, contributed to the extinction of the ground sloths, making the job at The Sloth Institute and the Toucan Rescue Ranch closer to “Where’s Waldo” than “Jurassic Park.” We have to remain vigilant because our sloths are again being threatened by humans and a climate crisis, and we don’t want to end up with only bones and footprints to tell their stories.

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What’s it Like to Be TSI’s Chief Sloth Nurse?

Sam Trull — Fri, 07 Jun 2019 11:07:29 +0000

Enjoy this special contribution from Jenna Heinze! TSI has the fortunate of having her here in Costa Rica for six months. How has it been so far? Read on!

Hi everyone! I’m Jenna the Chief Sloth Nurse here at TSI. I’m from Philadelphia where I have been a veterinary technician for 16 years with the last 12 of them at the Philadelphia Zoo. I started my partnership with TSI in 2017 where I was granted money from the Association of Zoo Vet Techs to come to help out Sam in the WiSH lab. She was interested in having me come and use my tech skills to help her advance the care of the sloths in rehab and to learn more about the wild sloths in the area. I was so excited and honored to be able to come and provide my assistance and use my skills in the field to help these amazing creatures!

After my month here I realized I wanted to continue helping out TSI even if from home so I set them up with an online animal records program which I maintain as well as continued to provide advice from afar. This past year it became clear to me I NEEDED to come back and follow my heart’s passion. So I packed my things and came to Manuel Antonio in March and will be here through the end of September!

My days here are filled with feeding the orphaned sloths we are raising and providing care to the sloths here recovering from injury or illness. Also, I have been helping to raise one very spicy tamandua, Schumer! It has been such a rewarding experience getting to be here long term and really immerse myself in the mission of TSI. I have been out on a few sloth rescues and seeing first hand the peril these sloths are facing daily and learning more how this non-profit works to protect them as best as they can.

With my lab skills, we are able to process blood and other samples quickly to help improve the care we can give our sloths. I also have helped get some automated blood machines loaned so we can take advantage of them as well to collect more sloth data and help with diagnostics.

My most rewarding case thus far is with Humpty Dumpty. I am sure if you follow our page you have seen his story. To see this tiny little baby be so incredibly resilient after such a rough start (which I fully admit I was very guarded with his outcome) was amazing. Day after day watching his progress and see him become more active and doing all the things a healthy baby sloth would do was amazing. Today he is regressing normally and as Sam refers to him every day is a “Perfect Baby”! Animals are so amazing

with their healing and resilience. I am excited to watch him grow over the next 4 months I am here and be a part of his progression to eventual release one day!

I am looking forward to the next few months and helping Sam and her crew further the TSI mission and discovering more about these 2 species. We do not have 3-fingered sloths in the states so learning more about them and seeing how they differ so much from their 2-fingered friends has been quite interesting.

I am honored to be a part of the TSI family and hope to continue to provide the skills and help I can even after I go home in September.

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The Sloth Institute featured in La Republica!

Sam Trull — Fri, 05 Apr 2019 09:07:15 +0000

Dolly arrived with injuries from an electrocution when climbing on the cables.

Dolly, a lazy two-fingered sloth, attends every week to an acupuncture appointment where they play spa music and she gets to eat her favorite leaves during the treatment.

After six weeks of somewhat unusual therapy, she is recovering movement of her arm, but her hand still needs a bit more help.

“We are seeing progress, and as long as we want to continue, and Dolly is willing to do so too, the specialist said she will continue to donate her time,” said Sam Trull, the co-founder of the Sloth Institute in Manuel Antonio.

Dolly was discovered with large burns on her body after an electrocution with a transformer, but the damage to her arm was not as deep as in other similar cases.

“Basically the options were to amputate a healthy arm, or find a way for the arm to fully function again,” said Trull, who also cares for sloths abandoned by their mothers or injured by dogs.

In about six months, the animal could be released back into the wild if she responds to the acupuncture treatment recommended by Constant Boshoff of the Rafiki center.

Although acupuncture treatments are relatively new with wild animals, it has already been successful in helping a Congo monkey recover from partial paralysis in the Animal Rescue Zooave.

The original article can be found here.

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“Finding Freedom” – A Sloth Conservation Comic

Sam Trull — Mon, 04 Mar 2019 01:37:04 +0000

“Finding Freedom” is a brand new sloth conservation comic based on true stories from the Sloth Institute!

This is a collaboration project between TSI’s leader Sam Trull and cartoonist Vivian Nguyen.

You can start following the new comic on Instagram by following @findingfreedom_aslothstory and catch up on all the adventures!

Chapter 1 - "Slow Searching"

Chapter 2 - "Eat & Greet"

Stay tuned for more!

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Destined to be WILD – Amanda Orens, SST Sloth Technician Supervisor

Sam Trull — Sat, 05 Jan 2019 04:02:35 +0000

*Originally published on Toucan Rescue Ranch’s blog*

Hanna and Ellie have been calling the shots of their newfound wild and free life. Hanna is an adventurous sloth brought to Toucan Rescue Ranch in March 2011 when she was found on the ground orphaned. Ellie, the more reserved of the two, was found in a sack covered in ticks as part of the animal trade.

Observing these two sloths making decisions and exploring their new home has been amazing! Both Hanna and Ellie have been seen eating natural leaves within the canopy, leaves we’ve seen wild sloths eating as well! We continue to put out some subsidized food to help them transition into an all-leaf diet, but the important thing is that they have a choice.

Ellie, the more cautious sloth, took one month to leave the cage and has taken a month in each new location to expand into her newfound territory. She tends to follow in the footsteps of her former cage mate, sleeping in all of Hanna’s older resting spots and following in Hanna’s tree routes. Although Ellie tends to choose her branches with care, she recently did her first “slingshot!” Here at the Release Site we call a “slingshot” move when a sloth pulls a higher branch of a nearby tree down so that they can move to the next tree. Once their weight shifts when the sloth has transitioned into the new tree, the branch snaps back to its original position and it looks like the sloth was flung with a slingshot! I have watched this technique with many more experienced sloths, both released and wild. I was proud to see our little Ellie learning how to get around the forest she now calls home.

Hanna, our more adventurous girl, was named after the famous boxer, Hanna Gabriels, and she seems to have taken after her namesake. Many times, Hanna puts up a fight during disagreements with her neighboring sloths. It is normal for there to be fighting amongst sloths, whether that be a territorial dispute or for another reason. Hanna holds her ground and blazes the trail for the rest of the sloths to one day be released at the the Release Site in Sarapiqui. Hanna has amazed us all with her navigation skills as she confidently climbs from tree to tree. She has a routine of areas in the forest that she likes to go to for her various favorite leaves and continues exploring the tree canopies.

Now, months later, after opening the cage doors, we will be closing the release doors once again, but this time we will be closing it to an empty cage. After observing that Hanna and Ellie no longer return to the cage seeking food or shelter, and seeing that they are sleeping high in the tree canopy and finding food, we feel confident they are doing well and no longer need the cage. Closing the release door is a big step — it means that the work put in to release the sloths is working. They are thriving in the forest, wild, and free. It’s a proud moment for everyone who has been a part of the Saving Sloths Together program.

Hanna and Ellie, continue to amaze us daily. Everything we’ve learned from them has enabled us to provide better care for the sloths awaiting release. They have paved the way for all future sloths to be released here at the Release Site and I look forward to many more days of observing these FREE sloths enjoying their best life.

Blog post and photos by Amanda Orens

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The Sloth Institute is leading the way for sloth research conservation

Sam Trull — Sun, 14 Oct 2018 03:33:00 +0000

With International Sloth Day just around the corner (October 20th), The Sloth Institute (TSI) is celebrating the sloth lives it has helped to save and thanking its supporters as it marks a special milestone – successfully releasing two more young and delicate three-fingered sloths back into the wild.

TSI is based in Costa Rica, and is leading the rest of the world in its efforts to research the behavioral ecology of wild, rehabilitating and released sloths after successfully rehabilitating two three-fingered sloths called Destiny and Pocahontas – two of the few three-fingered sloths in Costa Rica to be successfully rehabilitated from a very young age and returned into the wild.

Destiny spent the first half of her rehabilitation journey with our rescue partner, Toucan Rescue Ranch. Their support and collaboration through our Saving Sloths Together program was instrumental in getting Destiny to the point of being able to be released.

TSI, which is a not-for-profit organization, aims to research captive, wild and recently released sloths, so that scientists and animal-lovers all over the world might better understand the internet’s favorite slowpokes, as well as ensuring the conservation of sloths and providing care for injured sloths so they can be released.

The two three-fingered sloths were both found on the ground in the jungle as very young and sick sloths and took many months of care, training and monitoring to get them to a proper size and skill level so that they could both be released back into the wild.

While The Sloth Institute has successfully released many two-fingered sloths, three-fingered sloths are much more difficult to care for and most rescue centers around the country report a very low survival rate for three-fingered sloths (especially babies), making Destiny and Pocahontas’ journeys all the more special.

Pedro Montero, the Education and Conservation Coordinator at TSI, is one of the team members who helps rehabilitate each sloth. He said: “The training for release begins from the very first day they are in our care.”

“As three-fingered sloths are strict herbivores, we make it a priority to provide a wide variety of fresh leaves multiple times a day so that their gut bacteria is healthy and their nutrition is correct for growing and healing. We also provide proper climbing structures and practice trees, so that their motor skills develop accordingly.”

Sam Trull, Sloth Director and Co-Founder of TSI, said: “Three-fingered sloths are not known to survive in rehabilitation very well. I have been contacted by many other rescue centers in Latin America that have not been able to achieve this yet because it is so difficult, so we are really excited that we’ve been able to get two three-fingered sloths to the goal of release.”

“I think a large part of this success can be credited to the work we have done studying the behavioral ecology of wild populations. Understanding more about their natural behaviors and complex dietary requirements aids in our ability to make more informed choices during the rehabilitation process.”

Both sloths are fitted with special VHF tracking collars, so that the TSI team can continue to monitor and track their progress in the wild.

Sam added: “What we’ve been able to learn from tracking sloths in the wild has helped us with Destiny and Pocahontas, and it also means we can share what we have learned with other rescue centers across the world to ensure that more three-fingered sloths can survive and be released.”

The Sloth Institute hopes that it will be able to continue to rehabilitate and study many more sloths in the future. Thanks to donors and supporters, as well as partner organizations such as Toucan Rescue Ranch, sloths like Destiny and Pocahontas have a chance to survive and return to the wild.

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You Don’t Have to Be an Expert to Be a Sloth Warrior

Sam Trull — Thu, 13 Sep 2018 18:00:15 +0000

Abusing sloths for selfie tourism is one of the conservation issues that we are very passionate about correcting here at TSI, but it is one that we often thought would never happen in our “backyard”.

Most of the online evidence (photos and videos) of sloths being abused for hugs and photos from tourists originates in other countries, countries that are more “well known” for their wildlife trafficking. But the truth is that these kinds of wildlife crimes DO happen in Costa Rica, even if they are better disguised.

Someone may tell you they rescued this sloth but now it’s so used to humans that it cannot be released back into the wild. This is a lie.

Someone may tell you that the sloth is happy you are giving it a hug, because look…it is smiling! This is a lie.

Someone may tell you that wild sloths don’t mind living in captivity because they are lazy anyways and don’t move much. This is a lie.

The people who commit these crimes are getting savvy, because they know their audience is trying to pay attention; but even a caring tourist can get fooled. The bottom line: never participate in tourism that encourages you too pet, feed or take photos with wildlife (especially sloths).

Esperanza is a young juvenile three-fingered sloth that was rescued here in Costa Rica, by the government, from this selfish tourism scheme. After a thorough health check by myself and our Vet friends at Toucan Rescue Ranch, we released her into the jungle. Luckily, she is now wild and free and being tracked daily by our expert TSI sloth trackers. Since being set free into the jungle where she belongs, she has gained 1kilogram (nearly doubling her original weight) in just 6 months. This is a testament to sloths being healthier and happier in the wild with the freedom to make their own choices about their owns lives. We can stop this industry together. Don’t be Selfi(e)sh; say NO to sloth selfies.

DO NOT patronize any person or business offering any of the following:

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Been caught pooping!

Sam Trull — Mon, 09 Jul 2018 17:39:16 +0000

Thanks to TSI Intern Kate Buchanan for sharing her amazing poop-sighting story. Enjoy!

Sloths are arboreal mammals, meaning they give birth to live young and spend most of their time in the forest canopy.

They are well adapted to this lifestyle, sloths do almost everything in their tree top homes from mating to finding food, giving birth and moving to different trees.

One of the few times they do go to the ground is, would you believe, to go to the bathroom which they do about once a week.

This fact I love to share with guest when running The Sloth Walk a sloth spotting tour for The Sloth Institute at Tulemar Gardens.

I particularly love the bathroom ritual of the three fingered sloth who digs a little hole with their tail to deposit their faeces in.

Of course, spotting a sloth doing its business is high on the list of behaviours you’d want to see! It is the crème de la crème of sloth spotting! The chance of seeing this however is miniscule with the process taking around 10 minutes and only occurring once a week.

So you can absolutely understand my excitement when I spotted a sloth doing its business on a sloth walk tour!! But It get’s better! Not just any sloth… but one of our study animals- Deanery’s Targaryen!

She was moving around low to the ground in a small tree- a good sign she is heading for the ground.

She was also looking bulky around the nether region- another good sign it’s that time of the week, as three fingered sloths can lose up 30% of their body weight when relieving themselves.

My tour guests and I held our breath, gave her some space and sure enough she climbed to the base of the tree. We watched her do a little shimmy (digging a hole) followed by a pause (poop time!) and then some more shimmy (bury poop) before climbing back up the tree.

Once she was happily up in the canopy, naturally, we fossicked around the base of tree to look for her little pellet poop. We found it! Bagged it. And I sent it off to the lab for analysis. (Here I am showing one poop pellet on a leaf.)

What a tour! What a day! The sloth spirits were smiling down on us that day as we had a member of Team Sloth marketing there to capture the moments on camera.

During my time at the Sloth Institute I have easily run over 200 Sloth Walks (with 3 sloth poops). Without a doubt each tour is different! How lucky I am to show people from around the world their first sloth and to witness their varied reactions! It is even more fantastic to do so in an ethical way while also educating guests on responsible sloth tourism (#saynotoslothselfies) with a bit of sloth biology and ecology thrown in. After all, knowledge is worthless if not shared!

Video: Dani making her way back up the canopy after accomplishing the weekly bathroom ritual.

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All sloths a swimming

Sam Trull — Fri, 06 Jul 2018 03:20:42 +0000

Sloths are best known for their chill demeanor high up in the trees. My personal favorite past time is to watch them scratch their faces while hanging upside down from their feet with such skillful ease. It brings you to a place where you also feel relaxed…it’s almost as if you can imagine yourself high in the sky along side them without a care in the world.

But in addition to mastering the art of slow and deliberate climbing, did you also know that sloths are great swimmers? There is a rumor going around that only three-fingered sloths can swim…but it is not true…both types of sloths (two-fingered and three-fingered) are excellent swimmers! If you think about it, it makes a lot of sense for sloths to be good at swimming. Their entire life is centered around conserving energy and taking the path of least resistance. All of the habitats where they call home have the potential of having bodies of water nearby: mangroves, rivers, lakes and oceans. To not be able to swim would mean certain death if they happen to fall into any of these waters. In addition, it is a great way to cross open spaces or travel further distances down stream. Their ability to swim is instinctual and they also immediately hold their breath as soon as their face goes underneath, they all know these skills from birth…but practice makes perfect and helps to condition them to not be afraid of the water.

When rehabilitating sloths for release we have to think about their ability to locomote through the forest, including their ability to swim. So how is this talent affected when a sloth is injured and loses a limb…like an arm? Socorro is a one armed, two-fingered sloth. A few months ago she was hit by a car while trying to cross the street. Rushed to the Toucan Rescue Ranch clinic in Heredia, they were able to save her life, but her arm was unfortunately lost. Amazingly, she recovered really well and really quickly. She was an excellent climber and was eager to get back out into her forest home, so we fitted her with a VHF tracking collar and let her go with our SST (Saving Sloths Together team) located in Sarapiqui to be released back to the wild. The SST team followed her through the forest every day. However, with the rainy season approaching, the river waters were rising and we became concerned that Socorro may not fare well if she falls into the river. We know all two-armed sloths can swim…but can a one-armed sloth swim?

Check out the video below to see the answer!

What is Savings Sloths Together?

Toucan Rescue Ranch and The Sloth Institute came together in 2017 to form Saving Sloths Together (SST), a Costa Rica wide project seeking to provide greater opportunity for sloths in need. By combining each organization’s skills and knowledge we are able to improve the process of sloth rescue, rehabilitation and release in Costa Rica.

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Do sloths drink water?

Sam Trull — Sun, 01 Jul 2018 04:32:06 +0000

We have a very AMAZING #SlothFact video to share with you today!

Quiz: Do sloths drink water like other animals do in the wild?

Answer: People often believe that sloths don’t drink water because it is very rare to see a sloth actually doing so. To see a mom and baby drink water together is pretty special!

It is true that sloths get hydration from the leaves and fruits they eat. In the rainforest, it is common to see sloths drinking or licking water off of leaves.

But sloths that live in mangrove areas probably use bodies of water more often for regular activities, like swimming, pooping, and drinking water! So as this video shows, the answer is yes, sloths do drink water, but it is a rare sight to see!
#NowYouKnow #Slothsdrinkwater #sloths #slothfamily #MamaSloth #babysloth

Thanks to our friends Paddle 9 for sharing this amazing sloth sighting, seen in the Manuel Antonio area of Costa Rica.

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