Brown-throated sloth,
native to Central and South America
Pan American Conservation Association,
Panama City, Panama
“I was at a rescue center in Panama photograph-
ing a wild sloth that was recovering after it had
been found injured in the rain forest. Sloths
are usually quite stationary—they can hang
motionless from tree branches for hours.
So I expected the animal to stay totally
still during the shoot. But when the sloth’s
caretaker set it down, it suddenly started
to inch toward me. It came right up to me
and lifted its head. Sloths have a smile-
like expression. I can’t say what this ani-
mal was thinking, but itlooked
as if it were grinning at me.”White-crowned hornbill, native to Southeast Asia
St. Augustine Alligator Farm, St. Augustine, Florida
“Raja the hornbill had a long, sharp beak, and he wasn’t afraid
to use it. In order to take the bird’s picture without him flying
off, we put him in a small, cube-shaped tent. No matter where I
was standing, Raja tried to peck at me through the tent walls!
When I stuck my camera
through the tent’s open-
ing, the bird began jab-
bing at the lens. I told
Raja to be careful—the
camera cost $6,000. But
he didn’t seem to care.”
Brown-throated
sloths can rotate
their heads up to
270 degrees.Hagfish can
twist their
bodies into
knots.Gulf hagfish, native to
Gulf of Mexico
Gulf Specimen Marine Lab,
Panacea, Florida
“Hagfish are fish that have a sticky
trick: They ooze clear slime through
pores in their skin to fend off predators or defend territory. The
hagfish I visited at this lab wasn’t too happy that I was on its turf.
As the caretaker and I placed it in a tank to be photo-
graphed, it slimed us! Goo got all over our hands and
the tank walls. You could barely see the fish in the
water. But after cleaning the tank, I finally got a
slime-free shot of the fish.”Moment of Yikes Moment of Ew
Moment of Yay
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC KIDS 15
Nesting female
hornbills hide in
tree hollows, sealing
the entrances with
droppings, mud, and
regurgitated
food.