Tales from the Jungle | March 2026
It’s been another full month in the jungle for Team Sloth. From international stages to crawling through the forest looking for dropped collars, and a few very exciting new arrivals in our sloth family - there’s been a lot going on. Some moments felt like big wins, others required a bit of perspective… but all of them are a reminder of why this work matters.
St Andrews Prize Finalists
Let’s start with both the good - and the almost.
The good news: our Connected Gardens Project was selected as one of three global finalists for the prestigious St Andrews Prize for the Environment, competing for the full $95,000 USD award.
The difficult part: we came very close, but did not take the final prize.
We want to congratulate the winner, Alyssa Melville from the South Rupununi Conservation Society, as well as fellow finalist Yvette Ishimwe of IRIBA Water Group. It was an honour to stand alongside such inspiring conservation work.
And truly, that is the most important part. This experience allowed us to connect with incredible people and fellow conservationists from around the world. Being recognised as a finalist is a powerful acknowledgment of how far Connected Gardens has come, from a small tree nursery in our backyard to an internationally recognised conservation project.
Dr. Cliffe re´resenting SloCo at St Andrews
A Documentary on Costa Rica’s National Symbols
This month, we also welcomed a group of students from the Universidad Estatal a Distancia (UNED), who joined us to film a documentary about Costa Rica’s national symbol.
The crew followed our research team in the field, and interviewed our lead researcher Jose Guzman Garcia, learning about the ecology and behaviour of wild sloths, and the work we do through the Urban Sloth Project. It’s always encouraging to see people wanting to tell these stories, especially the next generation. Conservation needs storytellers just as much as it needs scientists.
Back to Osa for Lesmen and Wilberth
Last September, we worked in the Osa Peninsula - one of the most biodiverse places on Earth - where we collared two sloths, Lesmen and Wilberth, in primary forest. This month, José headed back to retrieve their collars, which had been programmed to drop off automatically.
Now, this part always feels a bit like a treasure hunt. You’re essentially walking through dense rainforest trying to locate a small piece of equipment that has fallen somewhere in the forest. But this time - success! Both collars were found relatively quickly.
This kind of technology is a small but important step forward. It allows us to collect long-term data without needing to recapture the sloths, which means less stress for them and better welfare overall. And that’s always the goal.
New Faces in the Urban Sloth Project
Back on the Caribbean coast, the Urban Sloth Project continues to grow. This month, we welcomed Martita, as well as a new mother and baby pair, Christina and Mikah. And there is more exciting news. Our long-term resident Deborah has had a baby!
Our VIP supporters had the chance to suggest names and vote for their favourite. If you would like to follow Deborah and learn the chosen name, you can adopt her or join our monthly VIP community to receive updates directly from the field team.
Bigger bridges, bigger impact
This month, Deily and Mariano made a trip to the capital to collect our first set of structured canopy bridges.
These exciting new bridges are made from recycled electricity and telephone cables. They are designed to be more durable, sturdy and to span much larger gaps than our traditional rope bridges - particularly over major roads and highways where a single rope just isn’t enough. It’s a really exciting step forward for us and something that we have been working on quietly behind the scenes for a long time!
Looking Ahead
As always, none of this work happens in isolation.
From international recognition to local fieldwork, from new sloths to new team members, every step forward is made possible by a community of people who believe in this work. Supporters who help us plant trees, install bridges, follow sloths, and continue asking the questions that lead to better conservation.
Thank you for standing with us, for believing in thoughtful, science-based conservation, and for helping us protect sloths and their habitats, one step at a time.
All the best from the jungle,
