WORTHWAIT THE


Wildlife selfi es have helped turn sloths into social media stars, but close encounters come at a cost. In South and Central America, conservationists and guides are championing a diff erent approach — one that proves the most memorable wildlife experiences are often the most respectful


WORDS: QIN XI E H


igh in the jungle canopy, a three-toed sloth is surprisingly tricky to spot. Sleepy, sedentary and supremely camoufl aged, it often takes an experienced guide to pick out the curve of a


hooked claw or the outline of a smiling face among the leaves. Yet, on social media, sloths seem remarkably


easy to fi nd. Tourists are frequently snapped cradling the slow-moving mammals while gushing over the experience. Flooding the comments section are people who want to know where the photo or video was taken so they can recreate it themselves. Interactions like these seem innocent enough, but the reality is far less idyllic. “Sloths are sensitive animals that experience


extreme stress when handled, transported and exposed to noise and constant human interaction,” says Cecilia Pamich, director of communications at The Sloth Conservation Foundation. The irony is that many of the behaviours tourists


interpret as signs of contentment are anything but. The famous sloth ‘smile’ is simply a trick of anatomy; sloths lack the facial muscles needed to produce expressions in the way humans do. Their slow movements, meanwhile, can make them appear calm even when they are distressed. And the wave often seen in photographs? That’s usually a defensive behaviour — an attempt to make themselves appear larger to potential predators. Wildlife organisations, including the


International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), warn that social media has helped normalise interactions with wild animals that would once have been considered inappropriate. In the case of sloths, IFAW says the growing popularity of selfi es and close encounters is fuelling an illegal trade across Central and South America, encouraging animals to be snatched from the wild to satisfy tourist demand. There are no reliable fi gures for the scale of the trade, but conservationists believe thousands of


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