Three-toed Sloth

Three-toed sloths (genus, Bradypus; family Bradypodidae) are built for life in the treetops. Their long claws have such a tight grasp on branches that dead sloths can keep their grip and remain suspended there. Not that you'd always know. These critters are nearly motionless in life as well, especially when it's cold. Their metabolism is half that of other mammals, so they have imperfect control over their body temperature. When it's cold, they become super lethargic to conserve energy.

A sloth's eyesight and hearing are not very acute, so they orient themselves mainly by touch. Sloth limbs are adapted for suspending their bodies rather than supporting them. As a result, sloths are almost helpless on the ground unless there is something to grasp. They only come down every six days or so to have a "quick" wee and a poo (always in the same spot).

Unsurprisingly, sloths mate, give birth, and sleep in trees. And they sleep a lot—15 to 20 hours on an average day. They get up at night to eat some leaves, shoots, and fruit from the trees and get almost all of their water from juicy plants.

They are surprisingly good swimmers though, go figure.

This work is on 300gsm cotton pressed paper, currently set in an external frame and ready to hang. It can easily be reframed to your liking. Its fine detail makes for an interesting piece that invites you to come in for a closer look.

Follow

Frieda-Marié de Jager is a South African artist and writer living in north Melbourne. She's enjoyed painting her whole life, since the first self-portrait on the wall at 18 months, and is specifically in love with painting weird and wonderful creatures.

Frieda has a formal education in fine art and holds a technical degree in jewellery design and manufacturing. She worked in South Africa's world-renowned diamond industry before her career veered into marketing, content writing, and graphic design.

Since the birth of her son, an avid young scientist, learning about nature's most intriguing critters has been an everyday adventure. She uses her son's curiosity as inspiration for choosing her subject matter and, in many ways, each new work becomes an adventure in science and art.