Koalas

Cute and cuddly, that is what koalas are known for, with giant ears and fluffy fur. Lovely. Koalas are ALSO known for their laziness and constant naps, it is an extremely laid-back creature. But did you know that koalas aren’t actually lazy? Because of their diet, which consists of nutrient-poor eucalyptus leaves, much of the koala’s energy is used in digesting the leaves, which can take 200 hours. In addition, eucalyptus leaves provide very little energy. Even its brain is an energy saver, being so small that it does not even fill the skull.

So koalas have to recharge their batteries almost constantly to be able to digest the leaves. And how do they recharge their batteries? You guessed it, by sleeping. Koalas are stuck in a never-ending cycle of eating and sleeping. Many people look at the koala sleeping for 20 hours a day and conclude that the koala is lazy, but now you know the true story.

When in koala territory, look out for them dozing in the upper parts of trees, wither wedged in a fork or slumped on a horizontal branch. You might spot a white flash of chest fur or smell the pungent odour of a male on heat.

Sloths

Sloths live in the tropical forest of Central and South America. They have long arms, thick fur, round head sad looking eyes, long and sharp claws, and small ears. These animals live solitary lives and travel from tree to tree using canopy vines. They munch on leaves, twigs and buds. A low metabolic rate means sloths can survive on relatively little food, it takes days for them to process what other animals digest in only hours.

Sloths are really strong animals. From the moment they are born, sloths are able to lift their entire body weight upwards with just one arm. Specialized tendons in the sloth’s hands and feet lock into place, allowing them to hang upside down for long periods of time without wasting energy.

Just like koalas, sloths’ reputation for being lazy is untrue. Sloths have two major reasons for their slow-moving limbs; to conserve their energy and to avoid being spotted by predators which many rely on motion to find prey. Sloths move so slowly, that even algae grow on their fur. This actually helps them as it camouflages them into the green leaves around them, thus hiding them from predators. They sleep or rest for about 15 hours per day and maintain a low body temperature, moving in and out of the shade to regulate their body temperature. Amazingly, sloths are great swimmers, too.

Conclusion

Koalas and sloths aren’t actually lazy, but for the sake of this article, if koalas’ and sloths’ sluggishness was just because they don’t want to do anything then we can safely conclude that koalas are the laziest animals in the animal kingdom!