What happens to a sloth when its body temperature drops to about 20 degrees Celsius?

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A juvenile three-toed sloth hangs from a tree branch surrounded by green leaves in Costa Rica. — sloth Juvenile three-toed sloth (*Bradypus*) climbing a tree branch.

Sloths are heterothermic mammals, meaning they have imperfect control over their internal body temperature. While their normal body temperature typically ranges between 25 and 35 °C (77 and 95 °F), it can fluctuate based on environmental conditions. When a sloth's body temperature drops to approximately 20 °C (68 °F), the animal becomes torpid, entering a state of reduced physiological activity.1