Don’t be a Sloth this October, join in a virtual event to help protect this species in the wild.

The Sloth is the world's slowest mammal

Article submitted by Drusillas Park

Don’t be a Sloth this October. Join in a virtual run to help protect this species in the wild.

Drusillas Park in Alfriston near Eastbourne, East Sussex has announced the launch of a virtual race for conservation.

Participants are invited to complete a distance of two and a half kilometres, five kilometres or ten kilometres to raise money for The Sloth Conservation Foundation (SloCo).

This is a non-profit UK registered charity based in Costa Rica, that aims to protect sloths in the wild through conservation initiatives and scientific research.

Deputy managing director, Cassie Poland, said: “We are so excited to be hosting our first ever virtual race. We are working in association with England Athletics and Run Britain.

"The race is open to anyone who wants to take part and there are no entry requirements so it doesn’t matter your age or ability, anyone can get involved.”

Drusillas Race for Conservation will take place between October 5 and 11.

Participants can choose from the three different distances and have a week to complete their run. There is no specification for how the race is completed and the distance can be done all in one day or spread out over the course of the week.

Designed to include everyone, participants can run, walk, cycle, toddle, scoot or wheel their way to the finish line, and as the event is virtual it can be completed in any location.

There are only 250 places available and entries will be allocated on a first come, first served basis. Anyone wanting to take part should send their name, email address, how they plan to complete the race and their chosen distance to marketing@drusillas.co.uk.

An email will be sent out to confirm their space. The deadline for applications is 12pm on Friday, October 2.

All participants will receive a virtual certificate, a feature in Drusillas newsletter and a special thank you from The Sloth Conservation Foundation in Costa Rica.

Drusillas Zoo animal manager, Mark Kenward, said: “We are so excited about this virtual race. To take part there is a mandatory minimum donation of £5 per person to The Sloth Conservation Foundation, which must be done via our charity page, but we will give details of how to donate to all successful applicants.

"The sloths will be very grateful if people would like to donate more than £5 too. If you do want to fundraise more money or donate more money, we would be extremely thankful. Sloths are facing the most devastating reality in the wild, so we really want to do what we can to raise funds and support for SloCo.”

Drusillas has been working hand-in-hand with SloCo over the past few months to help them work towards achieving their conservation goals.

The foundation was created by one of the world’s leading experts in sloths, Dr Rebecca Cliffe, who said: “Sloth populations are in decline throughout South and Central America as they struggle to adapt to the urbanisation of the rainforest. Saving the world’s slowest mammal from extinction now requires innovative and long-term conservation solutions that target both human and sloth populations.”

The Sloth Conservation Foundation has seven primary conservation programs that help to protect sloths in the wild, to read all about these programs please visit the website.

Located just off the A27 in Alfriston, East Sussex, Drusillas Park is open daily from 10am. For more information call 01323 874100 or visit www.drusillas.co.uk. For more information about SloCo please visit here.