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Edinburgh Zoo Names Scotland’s First Baby Sloth Atty
The newborn male Linne’s two-toed sloth will cling to his mother for six months and learn which leaves are safe to eat.
On Monday, May 11, Edinburgh Zoo welcomed Scotland's first-ever baby sloth, a male Linne's two-toed sloth named Atty in honor of Sir David Attenborough, who celebrated his 100th birthday on May 8.
The baby is the first offspring for six-year-old parents Nico and Feira, with staff choosing the name as a nod to a 2017 BBC interview where Attenborough selected the sloth as his preferred animal for a day.
For the first six months, Atty will cling tightly to Feira's stomach before learning to eat by sampling leaves from her mouth. Visitors have been able to view the pair in the Sloth House since Wednesday, May 13.
Head keeper Jess Brown said the birth is "ground-breaking not just for Edinburgh Zoo, but for Scotland," noting Atty is already showing plenty of personality while peeking from his mother's fur.
This arrival follows a capybara pup birth earlier this month—the first in Scotland in 18 years—as the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland continues its focus on protecting endangered species.
A sloth cub has been born for the first time at a Scottish zoo, and has been named Atty in honor of David Attenborough. According to zookeepers, the cub shows a lot of personality, and visitors can already see his little face during their visit.