Meet Xena the Lovable Sloth
Published on October 11, 2013
This baby girl might be slow moving, but she’s pretty quick to cuddle up to her keepers.
The San Diego Zoo is training its youngest animal ambassador, a 5-month-old two-toed sloth, to meet people up close during presentations and outings. But before heading out to entertain and educate, this little girl needed a name!
The public has spoken, and they chose Xena, short for the taxonomic superorder Xenarthra, which is comprised of armadillos, sloths and anteaters.
The other choices on the list were Dulce (sweet in Spanish), Guiana (the region that two-toed sloths are native to in northeastern South America) or Subida (Spanish for rise).
The solitary forest-dwellers are nocturnal herbivores who are found in the tropical and cloud forests of Central and South America.