Orlando, Florida officials are investigating another death involving sloths transferred to a central Florida zoo for rehabilitation, adding to scrutiny of an attraction project that authorities say never opened after importing dozens of animals that later died.
Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens said Habanero, an adult male, was euthanized Saturday to prevent further suffering. The zoo said it had taken the sloth for rehabilitation as part of a group given up by Sloth World, a tourist attraction planned for Orlando’s tourism district that never opened.
The zoo said Habanero had initially shown signs of stabilization, including eating and drinking regularly under close supervision by veterinary and animal care teams. It said his condition then deteriorated in recent days.
Zoo officials also said Bandit died last week after being transferred to the Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens. Together, the deaths are the latest in a series of sloth fatalities tied to the Sloth World matter, which is now under a criminal investigation by state and local authorities.
In its statement, the zoo said that when the sloths arrived, “all were underweight and are being treated for gastrointestinal (GI) issues, requiring intensive, specialized care.” It added that Habanero’s early progress included eating and drinking regularly before the decline.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has said inspection reports it prepared found 31 deaths between December 2024 and February 2025. The agency said 21 sloths imported from Guyana died at an Orlando facility called Sanctuary World Imports in December 2024, during a period when temperatures fell into the 40-to-55 degree Fahrenheit range.
The state agency said sloths cannot regulate body temperature as well as other mammals and do best in a warmer 68-to-85 degree Fahrenheit range. After the earlier importation from Guyana, the tourist attraction later ordered 10 sloths from Peru, which arrived in February 2025, the wildlife agency said.
Florida wildlife officials said two sloths were dead on arrival from the Peru shipment. They said the rest appeared emaciated and died of what the report termed “poor health issues,” according to the state agency’s inspection reporting.
The Associated Press reported that there was no answer Monday at a phone number listed for the tourist attraction in the wildlife agency’s report, as the investigation into the sloths’ care continues.