In this amusing and
entertaining archive clip from the 2002 BBC documentary series The Life
of Mammals, David Attenborough examines the life of one of the
world’s most extraordinary plant predators – the sloth.
This extraordinary creature,
found in the tropical rainforests of South and Central America, is half blind,
half deaf and spends most of its time hanging around half asleep in the
treetops. It only moves quickly when Mother Nature calls, and even then, quick
is a relative term.
But with very little muscle, and
a reaction time only one-fourth as fast as ours, how does a sloth’s day compare
to a humans? Attenborough investigates.
Interested in interacting with sloths yourself? At the Amazon Shelter For Animal and Environmental Protection
in Puerto Maldonado, Peru, travellers can help look after rescued
wildlife such as pumas, monkeys and sloths.
All week, BBC Travel is running
Earth clips to celebrate more than 50 years of natural history film making by
Sir David Attenborough!
For more natural history exclusives, check out the BBC Earth
YouTube channel or follow BBC Earth
on Facebook or Twitter.