Turtles might immediately come to one’s mind when asked to think of slow animals.
Snails might quickly register, too.
What about sloths?
What about what?
Maybe not as commonly known as turtles and snails, perhaps partly due to the fact that they mostly live in South and Central America’s tropical forests, sloths are slow-moving tree-dwelling mammals.
Writing for National Geographic, Liz Langley said that these “slowpokes” move “a mere mile (1.6 kilometers) per hour,” which happens to be their “top speed.”
Sometimes people would associate cuteness with size; therefore, some might not find the now extinct giant ground sloths cute or cuddly.
The giant ground sloth “was the size of an elephant” and with others “as tall as present-day giraffes,” according to Encyclopaedia Britannica.
Back in 2009 in Panama, five teenagers found a dead creature in a creek and took a picture of it. They posted it online and it “quickly earned the creature the nickname ‘Panama ET,’” reported National Geographic News.
The creature showed a “smooth and almost glowing skin” and an “extraordinary appearance.”
The National Environmental Authority of Panama conducted a biopsy. It revealed that the dead creature was a male three-toed sloth.
Veterinarian André Sena Maia said that being submerged in water for a long time caused the sloth to lose its fur. He also said that its organs swelled because of bacteria.
Sloths gained publicity on a global scale via Walt Disney’s “Zootopia,” not to mention growing interest from many Chinese moviegoers.
Xinhua said that these furry animals are now “a social media sensation” in the country.
“Zootopia” featured a roster of animals--antelopes (gemsbok and lesser kudu), arctic shrew, black jaguar, black rhinoceros, cape buffalo, cheetah, elephants (African and Indian), foxes (fennec and red), honey badger, koala, lion, moose, nine-banded armadillo, otter, pig, polar bear, sheep, Thomson’s gazelle, weasel--but the sloth seemingly has made the greatest impression.
In the film, the sloths are not found clinging on trees; rather, they are seated behind a counter at the city’s Department of Mammal Vehicles (DMV).
They are not also seen in such a lazy-looking state but all appear to be busy at the DMV: taking a picture, answering a phone call and giving public service in general, albeit on a very slow pace.
One of the personnel--take a note of this--is named Flash.
Yes. That sloth goes by the same name as Flash, possibly the fastest being in the DC Comics world and the likely counterpart of Marvel’s Quicksilver.
American animator-director-screenwriter-producer Raymond S. Persi voiced Flash. Persi worked as a storyboard artist in the 2013 American blockbuster phenomenon, “Frozen.”
American actress-singer Kristen Bell lent her voice to Priscilla, a bespectacled sloth also working at DMV.
The 35-year-old blond, who voiced the 18-year-old Princess Ana of Arendelle in “Frozen,” adores sloths in real life.
Bell actually experienced “a sloth meltdown,” according to The Ellen Show.
When American actor-writer-director Dax Shepard, her husband, surprised her with a sloth on her 31st birthday, an overjoyed Bell simply cried on her bed.
In the interview with host Ellen at the Ellen DeGeneres Show, Bell said, “…because my entire life had been waiting for this moment where I would get to interact--(then looked at the audience) I’m serious--with the sloth.”
There are some people out there who are probably also waiting for that moment to see a sloth in person and interact with it. A couple of selfies wouldn’t hurt, too.