Biologist, Summerland resident, and host of Animal Planet’s Extinct or Alive series Forrest Galante loves getting wild. Some have suggested his “high-risk wildlife biology,” as he puts it, compares to that of Steve Irwin, Jacques Cousteau, or Bear Grylls, all high praise Galante humbly takes in stride as we sit under palm trees where Galante just finished playing with the Santa Barbara Grunions rugby team.
Originally from Zimbabwe, Galante was surrounded by wild animals from a young age. He turned this love of animals into his life’s work, and after getting a degree in biology with an emphasis in herpetology and marine biology from UCSB, he spent years working as a freelance scientist.
“I did a ton of work on the Channel Islands, a ton of the restoration work; worked with eagles; with foxes; worked with salamanders; a lot of abroad work with sea turtles; with elephants; a lot of rattlesnake work; a lot of different animal work all over the world,” Galante said.