Forrest Galante
Forrest Galante | |
|---|---|
 Galante with a pangolin, 2018 | |
| Born | March 31, 1988 |
| Occupation | Television host |
| Known for | Extinct or Alive on Animal Planet |
| Spouse |
Jessica Evans (m. 2015) |
| Website | forrestgalante |
Forrest Galante (born March 31, 1988) is an American outdoor adventurer and television personality.[1] He works in the field of wildlife biology, specializing in the exploration of animals on the brink of extinction. He is the host of the television show Extinct or Alive on Animal Planet.[2]
Early life
Shortly after his birth in California, Galante and his family moved to Harare, Zimbabwe, where his mother ran a safari business.[3] He and his sister were raised on a farm that cultivated flowers and fruit, and served as a home to livestock and wild African animals.[4] Throughout his youth, Galante spent time exploring the African bush, learning to wrangle snakes, trap small animals, and snorkel the reefs of the Bazaruto Archipelago.[5] In Zimbabwe, he attended an English boarding school and headed up the Junior Herpetology Society, studying native flora and fauna.[3]
In 2001, following violent political unrest in Zimbabwe, which led to the invasion and burning of the family farm, Galante was forced to return to California.[3] He resumed his education in Santa Barbara, where he graduated from high school and later earned a degree in biology from the University of California at Santa Barbara.[5]
Galante's interest in wildlife and conservation continued into his adulthood. "After university, I set out to explore the world looking for the most beautiful, remote and wild places on the planet," he said. "I have been bitten by a venomous snake, in a plane crash, mauled by a lion, charged by a hippo, stung by a man-of-war jellyfish, bitten by a shark, in a car wreck, tumbled off a waterfall and stabbed by a stingray."[6]
Career
In 2013, Galante made his first foray into television with an appearance on the Discovery Channel's Naked and Afraid, where he participated in the show's 21-day survival challenge.[7] He completed the challenge—being dropped with a stranger in the remote section of northwestern Panama—and scored one of the highest PSR (primitive survival rating) in the show's history.[8]
In 2016, Galante and his photographer were among the first to ever swim with crocodiles, wearing special suits that mimic the crocodile's scaly skin and block the body's electrical current, allowing them to capture the reptile's natural behavior. The duo came within inches of the crocodiles, filming them in their authentic habitat for their film Dancing with Dragons.[9]
On June 10, 2018, Galante's docu-series, Extinct or Alive premiered on Animal Planet.[10] The show sought to reveal whether animals believed to be extinct can potentially still be found. In each episode, Galante explored the habitats of these animals, often seeking protection to help preserve the species and encourage their continued survival. Destinations have included Taiwan (to search for the Formosan clouded leopard), Newfoundland (to explore the White Wolf), and Madagascar (to search for traces of the giant Pachylemur).[11]
Galante has also made media appearances on The Joe Rogan Experience, The Nightly Show, Shark Week, and The TODAY Show.[12]
Discoveries
In his search for unique wildlife, Galante has visited over 46 countries.[5] He captured trail camera footage of a Zanzibar leopard—an animal that had been presumed extinct for 25 years—off the eastern coast of Africa.[13] During an expedition to the Galapagos in February 2019, Galante found a Fernandina Island Galápagos tortoise, which had been classified as extinct since 1906. Following a sighting of tortoise scat in the field, the team found the tortoise beneath a pile of brush.[14]
On another expedition in 2015, Galante's girlfriend—now wife—Jessica Evans, joined him in the South Pacific and Indonesia to search for the world's most venomous snake, the Banded sea krait. There, while spearfishing for the couple's dinner, Galante caught the snake, whose venom is ten times that of a cobra.[15]
On October 6, 2014, Galante caught a 70-year-old lobster weighing close to 12 pounds off the California coast. The massive crustacean was re-released into a marine protected zone.[16] The following month, he discovered a rare hammerhead shark near Anacapa Island, off Ventura, and videotaped the experience, an adventure he described as "not the smartest idea we've ever had."[17]
Personal life
In 2015, Galante married Jessica Evans on Stocking Island in the Bahamas. The couple resides in California.[18]
References
- ^ "Forrest Galante". Discovery. December 1, 2013. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
- ^ "Extinct or Alive". IMDb.
- ^ a b c Cabakoff, Rachel (December 24, 2013). "Profile: Forrest Galante". The Santa Barbara Independent. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
- ^ here, Sam Schaust I'm still (May 5, 2015). "Unshakable: an interview with Forrest Galante [extended online version]". Afraid. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
- ^ a b c "Forrest Galante". Spearing Magazine. August 29, 2016. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
- ^ "Adventurer Forrest Galante travels the world to meet the most dangerous animals". news.com.au. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
- ^ Double Jeopardy, retrieved March 31, 2019
- ^ John (June 7, 2017). "Here are the top ten Naked and Afraid PSRs of all time (along with a few dubious lows)". starcasm.net. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
- ^ https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/85609105/scaly-suit-wins-over-crocs
- ^ "Animal Planet Greenlights New Series 'Extinct or Alive' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
- ^ "Extinct or Alive: Animal Planet Series Searches for Species Believed to Be Extinct". canceled TV shows - TV Series Finale. May 22, 2018. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
- ^ "Forrest Galante". IMDb. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
- ^ "Zanzibar Leopard Captured on Camera, Despite Being Declared Extinct". Inside Edition. June 7, 2018. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
- ^ "'EXTINCT' TORTOISE REDISCOVERED IN GALAPAGOS AFTER 113 YEARS DURING ANIMAL PLANET EXPEDITION". Animal Planet. February 20, 2019. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
- ^ Krol, Charlotte; Jan 2015, video source Caters 11:44AM GMT 20 (January 20, 2015). "Watch: Man catches one of the world's most dangerous snakes". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Siciliano, Leon; Dec 2014, video source Barcroft 11:49AM GMT 03 (December 3, 2014). "Giant lobster 'aged 70' caught off Californian coast". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "A tense encounter with a hammerhead shark". Adventure Sports Network. November 12, 2014. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
- ^ Francis, Sarah; Chinnock, Hannah (August 17, 2015). "Couple celebrated wedding surrounded by stingrays and sharks on desert island". mirror. Retrieved March 31, 2019.