Here’s a bit of a departure from our regularly scheduled program. Around 6pm Friday night we headed out to dinner, but we never made it. We had lost power around 5pm during a game of Wingspan and were going out to dinner because there was no way to cook anything. As we were driving through the neighborhood we noticed a Two-toed Sloth crossing one of the power lines in front of us, which is not necessarily an everyday occurrence. We stopped the car to see what was going on because she just kept going from one side of the road to the other, back and forth, and seemed unable to get down. I say “she,” because a photo I took of her revealed that she also had a young baby clinging to her belly.
Neighbors came out to help. ICE (our electric company) was called. They made two valiant attempts to save her with their bucket lift but were unable to do so. We called the Administrator of the WhatsApp group for our town, Johan, and he called the fire department (Bomberos). When they arrived, they came with specialized gear, but Mama Sloth wanted nothing to do with any humans coming between her and her baby.
Four and a half hours later, they finally got the baby in the bucket lift, but Mama just kept right on fighting. About another half hour after that, they were finally able to get her into the bucket. I have never seen a wild animal fight so hard for what she believed was her freedom. It was excruciating to watch, and I’ll admit I lost my s+#& a few times, but ultimately inspiring, and it filled me with relief when she was finally captured. Mama and baby were put into a sack (I helped a little getting her to let go of the catchpole; Sean brought the sack) and the firefighter who had gone “mano-a-mano” with her sharp teeth and giant, lethal claws released her into the forest.
Those ICE guys and Bomberos are heroes, full stop. If it were only for the fact that they kept the power off to our neighborhood until the sloths were safe and sound, that would have been enough. But that ICE employee and the firefighter who went up into the bucket to do battle with the mighty mother sloth and ultimately get her to safety are braver than the average human, and more compassionate, too. I also want to send a big thank you to Rigo Pereira from Alturas for answering his phone on a Friday night after hours and offering advice, support and the number for Fernando. Fernando (don’t know his last name) also works for ICE and answered my texts after hours as well, and he doesn’t even know me! He works on their environmental side and he provided invaluable tips for the best way to catch her, and all kinds of moral support for me. (Can I mention again he’d never met me but answered his phone anyway??)
It’s one of those nights when you feel proud to be a part of something bigger than yourself, and also humbled when you see the true face of bravery, tenacity and dedication on the ICE guys, the Bomberos, and that precious Mama Sloth.
