Birth of a Linne’s two toed sloth at Roger Williams Park Zoo

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) – Roger Williams Park Zoo announces the birth of a Linne’s two toed sloth.

The baby was born on May 13 and resides in the Faces of the Rainforest exhibit with mom Fiona, and  dad Wesley.

“This is such thrilling news,” says the Zoo’s executive director Dr. Jeremy Goodman. “We have been monitoring Fiona’s progress since mid-autumn, and to see this little healthy sloth was exciting for all of us at the Zoo.”

Dr. Michael McBride, director of veterinary services at Roger Williams Park Zoo, says, “The baby is alert and active. This morning it weighed 644 grams (a little less than 1.5 pounds) which is quite large compared to other newborn sloths. The baby is nursing and experimenting with eating steamed green beans. Fiona was having trouble during labor, but the Zoo veterinary and animal keeper teams were able to assist with the birth. The newborn was able to go back with Fiona immediately after birth and Fiona seems to be taking excellent care of the newborn.”

The zoo’s statement says that sloths are born covered in fur with the ability to already climb.

For the first few months of life, the baby will cling to its mother’s belly and around two months of age, will begin to munch on leaves.

In the wild, for the first year or two of life, sloth offspring will stay with its mother, and then later will move to its own territory, usually just a tree or two away.