Utterly Adorable Baby Sloth Born At Lincoln Park Zoo (Photos)

By Jim Bochnowski in News on Aug 7, 2015 3:43PM

Via Lincoln Park Zoo

Two weeks ago, the Lincoln Park Zoo welcomed its newest addition, a baby Hoffman's Two-Toed Sloth.

The sloth was born on July 25 and is the first child for mom Hersey. Because the baby sloth is currently so close to its mother, regularly clinging to her and nursing, it will be "several months" before zookeepers can determine its gender and measure its size and weight, a spokesperson told the Tribune.

In order to see the baby, guests can head on down to the Ecosystem Area at the Regenstein Small Mammal-Reptile House. According to the Zoo, the sloths like to hang out "under the eaves of the thatched roof near the building's exit." But the zoo does caution that the animals are nocturnal, so a sighting may take a great deal of patience.

The mother has been with the zoo for two years after being referred to the zoo by the Association of Zoos and Aquarium's Species Survival Plan, which aims to "cooperatively manage specific, and typically threatened or endangered, species population."

The father, Carlos, meanwhile, has had a much longer, busier tenure at the zoo: the new child is his 12th.

Via Lincoln Park Zoo