Animal with cult-like adoration on brink of extinction as it struggles to adapt to changing world

An animal that has gained a cult-like following on social media is on the brink of extinction thanks to global warming and climate change, a new study found.

The warming temperatures are having a devastating impact on the slow-moving, two-fingered highland and lowland sloths found in Central and South America who aren't able to adapt to a warming world.

Scientists determined that as temperatures in high-altitude regions like Costa Rica rise, sloths need to increase the amount of energy they exude or relocate to cooler climates.

Sloths live off a low-calorie diet making it essential to conserve their energy, making it difficult if not impossible for them to use enough energy to offset the higher temperatures.

These cuddly creatures have surged in popularity, racking up millions of video views in recent years as clips of them in their natural habitat have gone viral.

Over the last 50 years, Costa Rica's land surface temperature has increased by 2.5 degrees Fahrenheit and the researchers warned if the trend continues, sloths will be extinct by the end of the century.

'Sloths are uniquely vulnerable to rising temperatures due to their physiological adaptations,' the study's lead researcher, Dr Rebecca Cliffe told Newsweek. 

'They survive on an extremely low-calorie diet, so conserving energy is critical for them.'

Sloths don't need to consume much food because they have a slow metabolism which makes it take longer for them to digest food.

On average, sloths eat about 2.5 ounces of dry leaves per day and it takes 28 days for the animal to digest one leaf.

Without being able to consume more food, their metabolic rate can't increase fast enough to keep up with the growing demands of climate change.

Their digestion rate is 24 times slower than other similar-sized herbivores and have a metabolic rate that's only 40 percent of what would be expected for their body weight.

Although lowland sloths existence is at risk, researchers at The Sloth Conservation Foundation are more concerned for the future of the highland sloths who reside in constrained high-altitude areas, making it difficult to relocate to cooler regions.

'Unlike some species, sloths are creatures of habit, highly specialized in their habitat, and are not suitable for translocation to other regions' Cliffe told Newsweek. 

'If their environment becomes too hot, their survival is unlikely.' 

The study, published in the journal PeerJ Life & Environment, measured the highland and lowland sloth's oxygen consumption and core body temperature under conditions that mimicked climate change.

Their findings suggested that although lowland sloths might be able to acclimate to the warming temperatures by shifting their location to higher altitudes, highland sloths don't have the same opportunity.

 'Sloths are inherently limited by their slow metabolism and unique inability to regulate body temperature effectively, unlike most mammals,' Cliffe said in a press release. 

'Our research shows that sloths, particularly in high-altitude regions, may not be able to survive the significant increases in temperature forecast for 2100.'