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Posted: 24-09-2013 11:22 Post subject: Threatened island species, newly heard-of

Skirting the edges of strict cryptozoology; but threads seem to be permitted here, about species which are under threat, but indubitably still exist “at the time of writing”. A tale about a most beguiling creature, totally new to me. In part, initially attracted by the wondrously bizarre heading to the thread on the site where I found it (see below).

Quoting from the original post (dated 21 / 9 / 2013) of the immediately-above-referred-to:

“The Pygmy Three-toed Sloth (Bradypus pygmaeus) lives only on tiny Escudo de Veraguas island off the Caribbean coast of Panama. There may be only a few hundred of these animals, about two-thirds the size of a regular sloth, on this 1,000 acre island. The island is nearly uninhabited except for a few indigenous families who live there seasonally.

Last week a team working for the Dallas World Aquarium, a private zoo owned by a Texas billionaire, captured 8 sloths on the island and attempted to fly 6 of them to the US from the local airport at Bocas del Toro town. (The others were destined for another private zoo in Panama.) The excuse was that they intended to establish a “contingency population” just in case anything happened to the sloths on the island. However, three-toed sloths survive very poorly in captivity and have never bred there. While there are sometimes good reasons to establish captive populations, they need to be done as part of a species management plan. This group was going forward in great secrecy, without consulting other scientists who had been studying the sloths on the island for years. They had obtained official permits from Panama’s natural resources agency, ANAM, but no-one can explain how or why they were granted.

The people of Bocas town heard that the sloths were being kept at a hotel in town and started asking questions. When the DWA team tried to load them on the billionaire’s private jet, a near riot broke out. The crowd prevented the plane from taking off. The sloths were eventually taken off and returned to their island home.

Although they are safe for now, everyone expects these guys to make another try.”

If more info about this matter, wished for: unfortunately I’m a complete dunce about posting links, so can only give the following, cumbersome I’m afraid, directions.

Log on to www.straightdope.com/

Click on “Message Boards”.

When there, click on the tenth option down, “Mundane Pointless Stuff I must Share (MPSIMS)” -- I’m serious, that’s what the sub-forum is called.

When there, scroll down to (highly informative) thread “Plot to kidnap Panamanian Pygmy Sloths foiled (for now) “.

Posted: 24-09-2013 19:45 Post subject:

You wouldn't believe it would you. I must admit to have heard of these little creatures somewhere before.

As per the article there doesn't appear to be any reason to relocate these things away from there, especially if captive breeding is extremely dubious.

Really their Island sounds like the best place for them.

http://simbania.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/sloth.jpg

As an aside I do remember hearing that one of the Caribbean Islands, I think it was Cuba, was home to a ground sloth about the size of a domestic cat. Surely we could have kept that.

Another weird, to me anyway, sloth fact is that some of the famous giant ground sloths were in fact semi aquatic.

Posted: 24-09-2013 20:20 Post subject:

Posted: 24-09-2013 20:59 Post subject:

Posted: 25-09-2013 05:40 Post subject:

Well -- perhaps it is as well that the Romans never discovered the Americas...