on the smallest branches of the trees among which the sloth passes his life. The fore claws he uses as a hand in conveying food to his mouth. This he does with great address, retaining meantime a firm hold of the branch with the other three claws.

The collared Ai (Bradypus collaris) differs from the common Ai in many respects. Its face is naked and of a black colour; the hair of its body has a less withered look; the forehead, chin, throat, and breast, are covered with reddish or rustcoloured hair, slightly frizzled. On the crown of the head it is long and yellow, on the rest of the body pale orange. It takes its name Collaris from a large black collar, which completely surrounds the neck.

The Anau, or two-toed sloth, is not so slow in its movements as the Ai, and differs from it also in having no tail, and only two claws on its fore feet. The nose is shorter, the forehead higher, and the ears longer. Buffon quotes the following account of a two-toed sloth, which his friend the Marquis de Montmirail kept for three years in his

menagerie. "The hair of the two-toed sloth is much softer than that of the other. Though very heavy, and of an extremely awkward gait, he mounted and descended the highest tree several times in a day. He had been fed before I purchased him on sea-biscuit; and I was told that during the verdure of the trees he would require nothing but leaves. These he ate freely when they were fresh; but if dry, or pierced by caterpillars, he refused them. His ordinary food was bread, apples, and roots, and his drink was milk. He always, though with difficulty, laid hold of his food with his fore paws. His cry was plaintive and unlike that of the Ai. He did not appear to recognise those who took care of him."

Captain Stedman says, "that in Surinam the two species are distinguished by the names of the Sheep and the Dog-sloth, ou account of their hair; that of the first being bushy, and of a dirty brownish-grey, while the other is lank and reddishcoloured. This last also has but two claws on each foot, and the head is less round than the other. Both these creatures, by forming them

selves in a ball, have often more the appearance of excrescences on the bark than that of animals feeding on the foliage, which frequently prevents them from being discovered by the natives, who devour their flesh with avidity."

The sloths suckle their young, who cling to the breast of the mother until able to take care of themselves.

"Intermediate, between the sloth and the armadillo, probably, came two gigantic creatures, which inhabited this earth in a former state, but of which only the fossil remains are now found ;the megatherium, which was twelve feet long and seven high, and the megalonyx, which was probably little less. It is believed that they were clothed with a scaly shield like the armadillo; the claws were of enormous size.”*

The sloth which has been for some years in the gardens of the Zoological Society appears to be a specimen of the collared sloth (Bradypus collaris). That this animal should live and thrive in our climate is a matter of surprise, and certainly proves

* Gosse's Introduction to Zoology.

the care and judicious treatment it has received. Mr. Burchell had two sloths in a state of captivity, but though in their native country, and supplied with their natural food, they died in a few months. The sloth in the Zoological Gardens is furnished with a pole in its cage, under which it clings, and then presents the appearance of a rolled-up ball of fur. On being roused, its head soon appears, and it begins to move its limbs with great freedom. On the ground it drags itself along with difficulty, but on its perch, or the wire-work of its cage, it is very active. It appears to recognise its keeper, and to be pleased with his playful caresses, uttering a low plaintive cry. It daily enjoys exercise in a large den in which are various perches and branches formed into a kind of tree. If the weather be warm and fine, it is permitted to climb about one of the trees in the paddock adjoining the building where it is kept. Its actions are then very amusing, though it generally proceeds slowly from branch to branch, yet it often travels up or under them with great alertness. While suspended by its claws, it seems fond of rocking

the branch, which it does easily from its muscles being so very powerful. It is fed chiefly on plain soaked biscuit; the moisture of the biscuit is the only fluid that the animal ever takes. In a state of nature the sloth is said never to drink. The keeper says that if irritated it could bite with great severity, though it has no fore teeth. It also can strike violently with its fore arms, or inflict a severe wound with its powerful claws. It appears very gentle and not at all timid, coming to the front of the cage and staring intently at whoever comes near it. This animal is about two feet six inches long; the hair is soft and straight, and on the shoulders five inches in length. Mr. Waterton kept a sloth for several months, and when he took him out of the house, the animal would invariably direct his course to the nearest tree. Within doors his favourite station was the back of a chair, and after getting all his legs in a line upon the topmost part of it, he would hang there for hours together, and often, with a low and plaintive cry, would seem to invite the notice of his kind-hearted master.