Fun Fact #393 Xenarthra

 Fun Fact #393

Xenarthra

Sloths are part of the Xenarthra clade meaning “Strange Jointed” or “The one with strange joints”  and also include Armadillos, Anteaters, Glyptodonts (Extinct), Thalassocnus (extinct), and Megatherium (Extinct). It is theorized that their ancestor was a subterranean digger for insects in Africa before being isolated in South America and The Greater Antilles which allowed their Clade to diversify so drastically from other mammals. The big thing this Clade is known for is having only 40% the metabolism of other mammals their size allowing it to go longer between meals with the 3-toed sloth having the slowest metabolism of any known animal.

(Images from Wikimedia Commons)