animal conservation Archives - The Sloth Institute

Learn about Alan!

Sam Trull — Mon, 30 Mar 2020 12:45:30 +0000

Alan is a 3 fingered adult male who was found on the ground last August near a road and some electrical wires. He had been electrocuted on both hands and feet but his left hand was REALLY necrotic. Over time, as the dead tissue fell off, it looked like a grenade had exploded in that hand.

Luckily, he did not need amputation but it took MANY months for his hand to heal. Because of how long his immune system was fighting the infection from the electrocution, he also developed a fungal infection.

With a proper diet, some sunshine and medicated baths these were all imperative for him to heal.

Thankfully, his wounds have healed enough for him to be released this month!

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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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An “Iguana Moment” for the Sloth Team

Sam Trull — Mon, 03 Dec 2018 09:43:05 +0000

Thanks to volunteer Mackenzie J. Cahill for contributing this great diary story:

About 2 months in to my stay here working for the Sloth Institute. I was pleasantly surprised to get a text from Sam Trull (Director of the Sloth Institute) that they had a spiny tailed iguana in at the lab and would like my assistance handling the large lizard. While we deal almost exclusively with two and three fingered sloths, the Sloth Institute will also opportunistically try to help out whatever wildlife happens to be close by. I of course immediately came to the lab, eager to see what the situation was. Sam explained that the iguana appeared to have a bum arm, possibly some mild damage to the muscle tissue, but no apparent broken bones or other serious impairment. She further explained that we will administer some Meloxicam for the pain and give the iguana plenty of rest until the arm seemed to be in running shape. So, I slipped on some leather gloves, reached in, and hauled up one of the largest lizards I’ve ever held. The individual was likely a male. This is because males tend to have larger heads than females as well as more prominent spikes running down its back. My right hand was gripping the back of his neck and part of his left (uninjured) arm so that Sam could handle the right arm. My left hand held the back legs and base of the tail so that he would not squirm around too much or whip his tail. After a quick injection I spent a little while longer admiring this beautiful creature.

Spiny tailed iguanas (Ctenosaura similis) are members of the iguana family. Reaching lengths of up to 4 feet these are the second largest lizards found in Costa Rica. Adults share black and orange stripes along the midsection of their bodies and vary in colors of teal, pink, black, orange, and gray in varying combinations and patterns. Juveniles are born green, allowing them to hide in the vegetation form predators. Another feature shared by all members of this species are the large sharp scales covering the tail which give it its names sake as well as aiding as a defense mechanism.

I have had a life long passion for reptiles, which began as a toddler with an obsession with dinosaurs. As soon as I was old enough to go outside on my own I started chasing lizards and catching snakes. Everywhere I have gone I am always on the lookout to get my hands on and observe whatever beautiful reptilian species I may find. When I was accepted to come work for The Sloth Institute in Costa Rica I was not only excited to be working with sloths, which are amazing animals in their own right, but also because I would be in my first tropical county and have the opportunity to see some extraordinary reptilian wildlife. That is why after a few days of rest, I was felt so privileged to release the iguana we had rehabilitated at the lab. After lowering the enclosure and watching this gorgeous creature, one of Costa Rica’s grandest lizards, run free with ease I felt two things. I felt good that I was able to help out this iguana and send him back into the environment he calls home, but I also felt something more, I could feel a sense of childhood wonderment. While watching this lizard running down the road in my mind’s eye I could see this same scene playing out millions of years ago with an iguana like lizard running along the grass and great lumbering sauropods off in the distance. After a quick sprint down the road before running off out of sight I got one last glimpse of him. I saw his dark brown eyes, his frilly neck with a slightly teal colored head, and those prehistoric looking black and orange spikes running down his back all the way to the base of his spiked tail. A tail looking like it belong to that of a small dragon. Then off the road he went, and the inner dinosaur obsessed kid in me was happy.

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Sloth Making His Way Across A Canopy Gap

Sam Trull — Fri, 02 Nov 2018 18:25:05 +0000

Have you ever seen a sloth travel between trees? Now you can! Our amazing leader Sam Trull captured this amazing video of a three-fingered male getting himself across a canopy gap in the jungle. Wow!

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Sloths ENdangered or IN Danger?

Sam Trull — Sun, 06 Nov 2016 20:14:35 +0000

In addition, underlying diseases and abilities to adjust to an ever changing world go un-detected without targeted research initiatives. There are active steps we can take towards creating a safer, healthier and happier future for wild sloths in Costa Rica. But first we need to learn, what makes a healthy sloth? What factors affect the health of individual sloths and sloth populations? In order to truly tackle these questions, we recently completed the build of Monster’s WiSH (Wild Sloth Health) lab.

A question I get asked often is “Are sloths endangered?”. While the sloths of Costa Rica may not be categorized as ENdangered, they are still very much IN danger. Every day critical habitat is destroyed and sloths are injured by human encroachment. They can’t run across roads, jump through gaps in the forest or fend off dogs. In addition, underlying diseases and abilities to adjust to an ever changing world go un-detected without targeted research initiatives. There are active steps we can take towards creating a safer, healthier and happier future for wild sloths in Costa Rica. But first we need to learn, what makes a healthy sloth? What factors affect the health of individual sloths and sloth populations? In order to truly tackle these questions, we recently completed the build of Monster’s WiSH (Wild Sloth Health) lab.

As a part of our research, we take various samples from the wild sloths that we are tracking so that we can monitor different health parameters to get an overall picture of the quality of life of certain sloth individuals and ultimately populations of sloths. Everything from weight, body measurements, feces, blood, hair, photos and more can be collected non-invasively to help us paint a clearer picture about baseline sloth health and what factors affect that baseline. With this lab space, we will be able to collect comprehensive knowledge about common sloth diseases in wild populations. We aim to not only investigate the baseline health of ‘normal’ sloth populations, but also correlate this information with habitat quality so that we can make recommendations on how to better develop human encroached areas to improve the health and quality of life for wild sloth populations in Costa Rica before it is too late. This lab is an instrumental part of our ever growing WiSH program providing our team a perfect environment to work, collect, store and analyze samples. In addition, this lab is a space where we can invite visiting researchers to collaborate on important conservation research that will save sloth lives.

We are so grateful to our incredible community of supporters that made Monster’s WiSH lab a dream come true to help us avoid sloths becoming endangered. We look forward to sharing our educational journey as we work every day to save the sloths that we all love.

– By Sam Trull

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Make a Difference, TSI’s Elementary School Sloth Challenge kickoff begins!

Sam Trull — Mon, 03 Oct 2016 02:10:29 +0000

Jane Goodall says, “What you do makes a difference and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make”. Teachers of the world make a difference each and every day by inspiring our young. One of our three missions at The Sloth Institute Costa Rica is Education; through education we hope to assure the well-being of sloths not only here in Costa Rica but on this planet. And by helping the sloth, we help preserve trees and the forest; for without a tree or the forest, not only would sloths become endangered but so will many other species of animals.

We are thrilled to have so many teachers signed up to participate in our 2016 Elementary School Sloth Challenge when we celebrate International Sloth Day the entire month of October. Inspired by Ms. Yang’s 1st grade class at West Point Elementary, The Sloth Institute through the many teachers who have signed up to participate, hopes to help inspire and educate young children about wildlife conservation. By educating our young about the importance of conservation of wildlife and the forests, we help ensure that our planet will be preserved in the future. Help us celebrate by sharing this with all the teachers you know. Teachers who have signed up will be receiving Sloth/Wildlife Information (Sloth Facts, How to be a Responsible Sloth Tourist, Why Taking Sloth Selfies is not a Good Idea and Why it’s Important not to Support the Pet Trade) throughout the month to share with their classrooms. You can still sign up as late as 5pm PST on October 3rd.

Here is the schedule for the month:

Week 1 Lesson:
Sloth Facts; Activity: Sloth Coloring Page or an activity of the teachers choosing

Week 2 Lesson:
Being a Responsible Sloth/Wildlife Tourist; Activity: The Pledge (stay tuned for more information on The Pledge!)

Week 3 Lesson:
Why Taking Sloth (or any other wildlife) Selfies is not a Good Idea; Activity: Discuss ideas on how to enjoy the wildlife without disturbing them

Week 4 Lesson:
Why the Pet Trade is So Bad; Activity: Come up with an anti-pet trade slogan and drawing (this can be submitted for a chance to win a 15 minute Skype session with Sam).

Thank you for your support and for teaching our young ones. And don’t forget, make a difference! #slothlove

Illustration by Autumn Ashley

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We WiSH for a Better World for Sloths!

Sam Trull — Fri, 16 Sep 2016 02:11:50 +0000

Here at The Sloth Institute, we work tirelessly every day to make positive differences in the lives of the sloths of Costa Rica. From helping orphaned and injured sloths get a second chance at a life back in the wild, to conducting in-depth scientific studies that teach us things like what sloths eat, how they navigate a complex environment, and what diseases they most frequently acquire. To help us accomplish these goals we are building a Wild Sloth Health (WiSH) lab where we can efficiently collect and analyze samples and evaluate the many hours of behavioral data that we collect every day.

The WiSH lab is not only needed to complete our investigations but it also represents our hopes, dreams and wishes for the sloths that we work with every day. We WISH for a world where all sloths can be happy, healthy and free. But without your help we can’t make this happen, so now we want to know: What do you WISH for sloths?

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Elementary School Sloth Challenge 2016

Sam Trull — Mon, 05 Sep 2016 12:04:48 +0000

CALLING ON ALL YOU AMAZING TEACHERS/ADMINISTRATORS/COUNSELORS!

A fun and interactive way to inspire kindness to animals and the environment

The Sloth Institute (TSI) is excited to announce our celebration of International Sloth month this October with our 2nd annual Elementary School Sloth Challenge. Last year’s campaign was quite special and the teachers who participated expressed that it was a very special experience for the kids.

Throughout the month of October there were weekly lessons and activities that taught students all about sloths, meanwhile inspiring kindness to animals and the environment.

Lessons included:

Sloth Facts
How to be a Responsible Sloth Tourist
Why it’s Important Not to Support the Pet Trade

We will share some fun ideas for an activity (such as a sloth coloring page which we will provide) and a few other fun things! Students are then encouraged to come up with an anti-pet trade campaign to submit by October 31st. The winning campaign will receive a 15 minute Skype call with the Co-Founder and Sloth Director of TSI, as well as author of Slothlove, Sam Trull, featuring some special appearances by our sloths!

Here is what Ms. Yang, the teacher of last year’s winning class, had to say about the experience:

“Today was such an amazing and educational experience! My students were so happy, they said it was the best day of their lives!”

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The Value of a Tree and a Sloth named Milena

Sam Trull — Thu, 21 Apr 2016 16:03:21 +0000

When I was an elementary school child, I used to plant acorns. One by one I would dig out little tiny holes in the ground, drop in the acorn, cover them up and keep them watered. I would check on them every day. When they first started sprouting I was SO proud. As they continued to get a little bigger I kept an obsessive watch. I would play near them every afternoon just to be with them. In fact, I remember taking my little tiny toy cars (no gender stereotypes here!) outside and I would drive them around the small saplings as if they were giant redwoods.

I knew those skinny little green beings would grow up to be big tall trees one day. I remember thinking that I would need to replant them somewhere with more space once they were big enough…I used to daydream about the spots were they would eventually live. They deserved lots of room for their leaves, roots and eventually…their own little acorns. I visualized the birds that would perch on their branches, the woodpeckers that would pound on their trunks. Even at that very young age I understood the value of a tree.

One day while I was playing in a different part of the yard, a neighborhood friend came over to see my sister. She brought with her a younger sister, a toddler, complete with random bursts of energy and that zig zag pattern while running that seems to only make sense to very small children. At first I didn’t really think much about their visit…I was minding my own business conducting my very important play activity (I think I might have been drawing on the sidewalk with chalk or something) but then I saw her….she was walking around with no apparent purpose and getting dangerously close to my little green babies! My heart started racing, I dropped my chalk, stood up and just as I was starting to charge over she did the unthinkable. Her little tiny toddler feet stepped on my precious herd of acorn saplings! Like the giant marshmallow man in the original Ghostbuster movies she smashed around smiling, pounding her feet while giggling, seemingly oblivious to the damage she was causing below. I’m not exactly sure what I did next. But I was very angry and I was crying and I’m pretty positive I never spoke to her or her sister again. Obviously this little girl was a toddler…a child…looking back I realize she didn’t understand that what she was doing was wrong or the devastating affect it would have on me. She didn’t mean to kill my acorn babies….but the result was the same. Their lives were over and I never tried to plant anymore acorns.

Fast forward to last year when I met a sloth named Milena.

She arrived at the rescue center where I worked with a day old baby attached to her belly. She had just given birth at a dog and cat vet clinic after having been knocked out of a tree. The tree she was living in had literally been…cut…down…with her still in it! The people who cut the tree down didn’t intend to hurt Milena that day…they didn’t intend to break her arm….they didn’t intend to cause premature labor for her unborn baby…in fact they are the ones who took her to the vet clinic, having realized their mistake and hoping to help her. They didn’t intend to hurt any sloths that day…they just wanted to cut down a tree.

Milena had a presence about her…she commanded respect. She was a wild, gorgeous creature that was happy to mind her business so long as you minded yours as well. She had her baby and she was so good with him, even with only one working arm…she would hold him in place while he tried to nurse, she shared leaves with him and nuzzled his little face. When it was time to rest she would curl up around him keeping him warm and protected. She was his world and she wasn’t going to stop being his mom just because her world was drastically altered. After a series of x-rays we realized that she was going to need surgery to have any chance of healing her broken arm and returning to the wild with her baby following behind. Driving her to San Jose for surgery was no easy task. Maneuvering through that crazy traffic is stressful enough alone, but when you’re caring precious cargo it makes you want to yell out the window at everyone whizzing past, “Be careful! Don’t you dare hit me!” I now understand the motivation behind the creation of those “baby on board” signs.

Luckily her surgery was a success and we were even able to keep the baby on her for the entire procedure so that they were never separated.

In the first few weeks post surgery we were very hopeful. Things were looking up for Milena and her baby. It was a lot of hard work and sleepless nights. I was having to supplement the baby with goats milk because he wasn’t gaining weight on his own with just Milena’s milk. It was hardly a surprise considering everything they had both been through. I was even starting to gain Milena’s trust. She would let me hold her to take her outside for bathroom visits, take her baby for feedings and bring him back….she even started to enjoy me grooming her and helping to remove extra ear wax!

Don’t get me wrong…she was a WILD animal and if given the chance she would have climbed up into the forest canopy without even looking back. But she made the best out of a terrible situation and during the process we both made a new friend. She knew the difference between me and other people. When I walked up to her and said hello, she looked over for me like she knew I was bringing her a special treat. Her favorite food, young cinnamon leaves, were almost always in my hand and I used to love watching her frantically try to get them in her open mouth…like she had never eaten before and she was starving…basically the same face I make while eating nachos.

Eventually her baby passed away. This whole ordeal was too much on his tiny little body and he was surely born with complications like unhealthy/underdeveloped lungs. Losing him was tough…seeing them together was SO amazing, probably some of the most beautiful moments I will ever witness…were their interactions together. I was worried Milena would be depressed, so I never let her forget that she still had me and that we would keep fighting until her arm was healed and she was back out into the forest. I was so determined that she was going to be free again one day…able to make more babies. But strangely…her arm wasn’t healing. It had been three months since her surgery and her arm was still painful and the X-rays showed the bone was not making enough progress. Finally through some research and comparison with human studies, we realized that her body was rejecting the metal pins placed during surgery. We pulled the pins out and tried applying a regular cast…going back to square one to see if conventional methods would heal the bone.

Immediately after pulling the pins she felt SO much better…this made me hopeful…maybe luck was finally on her side? She was more active and her arm was less swollen. However, after a few weeks with the regular cast, it became clear that she still wasn’t healing. X-rays showed that the damage to her bones was too severe and she was never going to completely heal. Unfortunately the only choice left was to amputate her arm. The day of her amputation surgery…I couldn’t even watch…I was too sad because I knew that this was the beginning of the end for her. How could she be released with only one arm? If she had to spend her life in captivity…there was no way she would survive…her spirit was too strong to be kept in a cage. I visited her every day after her surgery. Bringing her her favorite treats, taking her out to trees to see if she wanted to climb. I was clinging to any shred of possibility that maybe with a lot of help and patience she could learn to live in the wild with only one arm. I was never going to give up on her. But to be honest…she never seemed like herself after the amputation. She had been climbing without a functional arm for months…but now that that dead weight was gone she wasn’t climbing well at all. Her balance was off and she just seemed depressed. I think losing her arm was the final straw. She died two weeks after her amputation. I was with her…holding her head and rubbing her ears. I hope she knew how much I loved her.

Milena lost her home, her baby, her arm, her freedom, and ultimately her life…all because we as a society do not understand the value of a tree. Often, we don’t understand or appreciate the value of most things. Why is it as adults we often crash through life like a toddler, destroying things in our path without a consideration as to how it affects others? We should know better by now. We can do better.

I will never forget Milena the sloth or her baby…and the value of their lives…or the value of a tree. Join me in the fight against forest destruction. Share this story and help me remind people to think before they cut. #ThinkBeforeYouCut

By Sam Trull

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