The sloth spends its entire life hanging upside down in the tree tops feeding on leaves. It climbs to the ground only about once a week to urinate and defecate. In the continual dampness, green algae grows in its hair, giving the sloth a greenish tinge which serves as camouflage. Moths lay eggs in the hair and the caterpillars seem to feed on the algae. Its coat is also often home to several kinds of beetles which lay their eggs in the sloth's droppings when it descends to the ground. The beetles then return to its fur. Their newly hatched young fly into the canopy to find their own sloth home.
