Visitors to Stone Zoo will see a new addition to the Linne’s two-toed sloth family following the recent birth of a new baby on April 16. 

The baby, whose sex is not yet known, can be seen snuggling with mom Lunesta in the Windows to the Wild habitat, which is also home to the baby’s big sister, Sylvie. This baby is the eighth offspring for Lunesta, age 20, and her mate Nero, age 19.

“We are thrilled to welcome a new member to our sloth family,” said Pete Costello, Assistant Curator at Stone Zoo. “As with any new birth, we’re closely monitoring mom and baby. Lunesta is an attentive and experienced mother, and we are pleased to see everything going well so far. The baby has been observed nursing, its eyes are open and it’s moving around well. For the first month, the baby will hold on tightly to Lunesta.”

Zoo New England participates in the Linne’s Two-Toed Sloth Species Survival Plan (SSP), which is a cooperative, inter-zoo program coordinated nationally through the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. SSPs help to ensure the survival of selected species in zoos and aquariums, most of which are threatened or endangered, and enhance conservation of these species in the wild.

Linne’s two-toed sloths are furry mammals that live in trees and are found in the tropical forests of South America. They spend almost their whole lives dangling upside-down from branches that they hold on to with all four clawed feet. While these animals move really well through the branches, once they are on the ground, they are very slow and vulnerable to predators as they are not built for walking.

Sloths eat mainly a vegetarian diet of leaves and shoots, and they spend roughly 15 hours a day sleeping. Although they live in trees, sloths are not related to monkeys; rather, their closest relatives are the anteater and the armadillo.