Sloth Adorably ‘Waves’ at Passing Traffic Before Being Rescued From Street
One of the most popular animals around is the sloth. They are so relaxed and laid back, and they always look like they're smiling. They're also very slow, which makes getting anywhere a long process. ABC News shared a video on Sunday, February 25th of a sloth found in the middle of a highway in Peru while traffic swerves to avoid it.
The sloth seems confused and almost appears to be figuring out what to do next. The police were called to come and help get it out of the road. Watch as the officer approaches it, and what the sloth does after one vehicle swerves around them...it's almost like he's thanking the motorist for being careful!
The sloth's little wave is just the cutest! ABC News commenter @nikb1013 made me laugh when she pointed out, "I love that a sloth knows the appropriate “Thank You” gesture to give polite drivers but the humans I let cut in front of me on the daily don’t. LOL!" And after the officer gets him to safety, he seems to be so grateful for the help. @Heather Lynn thought maybe the officer took the sloth the wrong way, "Awwww he waved, and the way he was pointing the other direction, "Bruh I was going that way!!" I absolutely love sloths, they are so cute!"
Related: Hero Surf Instructor Saves a Sloth From a Busy Road in Costa Rica
Slow Sloth Facts
We all know that sloths move slowly, but they do almost everything else just as slow. Sloths eat slow and digest super slowly...it can take them 30 days to digest just one leaf! Because of their extremely slow metabolism, sloths can starve to death even with a full belly. And on that note, let's talk about them using the bathroom - they only go #2 once a week and it's called the 'poop dance' and it's something to see...just Google it, it's cute! They can also lose up to a third of their body weight when they do it.
Did you know that sloths can turn their heads up to 270 degrees? They have extra vertebrates in their backs that allow them to do this - they can turn their heads just as far as an owl can! They spend 15-18 hours a day sleeping, and when they sleep they hang upside down from tree branches like a bat!
The Sloth Conservation Foundation shared a really cool fact I didn't know; without sloths there wouldn't be any avocados. "The extinct giant ground sloths were some of the only mammals that had digestive systems large enough to process the huge avocado seeds whole. They feasted on the fruit and then dispersed the seeds far and wide. All tree sloths that we see today evolved from giant ground sloths."
I love learning random animal facts, and the one about avocados is one I'll definitely be sharing!
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