Jeff Corwin (7 page)

The entire incident was caught on film, as CNN cameras were rolling at the moment the elephant attacked. And in spite of the pain Jeff was in, he continued reporting the story! In an interview after the incident, Jeff said, “I was there to investigate the conflict between elephants and humans. You don’t get a better example of the story than what had just happened to me.”

In the end, Jeff healed fairly well. He felt lucky to be alive, and was reminded just how powerful animals can be.

Of all the animals in the world, it’s only the human variety that Jeff fears. Jeff believes people are far more unpredictable, dangerous, and destructive than any other animal. He has been in small planes that nearly crashed or had emergency landings. He’s witnessed coups d’état and revolutions, and had his hotel set on fire. And he’d still prefer a cobra that’s a little peeved to any of them.

No matter what kind of journey Jeff is on, or where in the world he is, he always exercises extreme caution. While he does want to create a unique experience for his viewers, he would never do anything to jeopardize the wildlife or himself. Jeff has a family that loves him and needs him to return from his adventures in one piece. Even Jeff’s wife, Natasha, doesn’t worry
too
much about her husband: “Jeff is a big boy and he’s a smart man. He has the utmost respect for wildlife.”

Jeff is also responsible for keeping his TV crew safe from harm. That’s why he and his staff do a great deal of research on the region and its wildlife before going into the field. And if Jeff senses that something could be dangerous, he simply won’t do it. While Jeff treasures his wild times, safety always comes first.

traveling Man

After Jeff completed
Planet in Peril
, he wanted to turn his focus on his own country—the United States. He approached the Travel Channel with an idea for a new series about travel in the United States. Jeff wanted to use the medium of television to explore his home-land. Jeff is best known for his work with animals, but the new TV series gave Jeff the opportunity to explore another of his passions—adventure travel.

The first program in the series is called
Into Alaska with Jeff Corwin. Into Alaska
is an eight-part series in which he investigates the amazing natural wonders of Alaska. The show was tremendously successful, thanks to Jeff’s pioneer spirit! He did everything from working on a commercial crab boat to scaling parts of Mount McKinley. Mount McKinley is the coldest mountain on Earth. It is so tall that it creates its own weather! Nonetheless, Jeff decided to climb it. He battled slippery ice, blinding light, and thin air as he ascended. But the amazing view at the top made it well worth it!

While in Alaska, Jeff also explored Ruth Glacier, where it can feel as cold as 148 degrees below zero! Glaciers are essentially enormous mounds of ice that are constantly moving, flowing, and shifting in the ocean. From the snowy surface, they appear solid, but underneath, huge crevasses can form, which present danger. So Jeff and his crew had to be especially careful when hiking the glacier. These crevices can be hundreds of feet deep, and become blue in their deepest parts. To get a better look at one, Jeff was lowered down into a crevice. He was suspended several feet below the surface and just hung there above an icy abyss until being lifted up again.

Into Alaska with Jeff Corwin
gave Jeff a chance to get friendly with Alaska’s animals, too. Jeff guided a team of sled dogs across the Goddard Glacier and kayaked with humpback whales. He even had a fishing competition with brown bears! One day, while fishing in the Margot River, Jeff noticed that there was a brown bear fishing just down the river from him. Brown bears are America’s largest land predator. These monstrous creatures can weigh up to fifteen hundred pounds. To get that large, brown bears in Alaska feed on live fish in Alaska’s icy-cold waters. They have to feed heavily during the summer in order to fatten up for winter, when they hibernate for up to eight months.

As Jeff caught fish, he noticed that the bear down the river was also catching fish. Jeff was equipped with a tool—a fishing pole—and could certainly outfish a bear, which just had its mouth and paws to rely on. Or so he thought! So Jeff spent the afternoon trying to catch more fish than the bear. It was a fishing competition! In the end, Jeff’s manmade fishing tool couldn’t beat out the bear’s natural tools, or its hunger-driven determination!

Jeff spent nearly a year filming in Alaska. He says, “I had a rich, complete, fulfilling experience working on that show.” Travel Channel viewers loved
Into Alaska with Jeff Corwin
so much that it was followed up with a second show called
Into America’s West
. Jeff explored the length and breadth of the West Coast, from the Canadian Rockies to New Mexico, all the while on the lookout for America’s wildlife, like mountain lions, bobcats, and black bears, to name only a few. For
Into America’s West
, Jeff did everything from working on a cattle ranch delivering calves to following the trails of Lewis and Clark.

For the show, Jeff investigated the Grand Canyon, Mount Baker, the plains of Montana, and Yellowstone National Park, learning how some of these incredible places were formed, and how they are still changing.

Jeff found the
Into
series enjoyable to create, not only because of the adventures, but because he feels that Americans forget that there is still an incredible frontier in their own backyards. He wants Americans to feel excited about the rich diversity of their own country. Jeff hopes to do another program for the series, perhaps
Into the East
.

And Jeff Corwin certainly is not slowing down. Jeff has been working on numerous projects, including a documentary on polar bears in the Arctic. He has also created another documentary called
The Vanishing Frog
, which aired on Animal Planet in late 2008.

In
The Vanishing Frog
, Jeff investigates the massive and somewhat sudden extinction of amphibians around the world. Amphibians are becoming extinct at a rate matched only by how quickly the dinosaurs were wiped out. Two hundred species of frogs and other amphibians have become extinct in the last decade. Jeff predicts that in the next three decades, the situation will become even worse: we’ll lose 50 percent more of those that remain.

Amphibians are important to predator-prey relationships, agriculture, and science. But amphibians are also an indicator of environmental quality, water quality, and temperature. When amphibian species are suffering, it is an early warning sign that something is wrong within an ecosystem. It could mean the other wildlife in the ecosystem will suffer as well. That is why Jeff feels it so very important to investigate the problem of our vanishing frogs.

In addition to his upcoming television work, Jeff is also in the process of writing several new books. His second book for adults,
100 Heartbeats
, explores a very scary ecological situation—the moment when there are fewer than one hundred life-forms left before extinction. He’s been globetrotting to study the final moments of failure or success for particular species. Jeff is also in the process of creating a series of kids’ books about nature. The series is published by Penguin Young Readers Group and combines nonfiction and fiction books—including this biography, a fascinating book about U.S. ecosystems, and a fun, fictional Junior Explorer series. These books come from Jeff’s heart because he is the father of two daughters. That’s right! In 2008, Jeff and Natasha became the parents of another baby girl, named Marina. When Jeff looks at his children, he is constantly reminded of how important it is for humans to leave behind a planet that is biodiverse and healthy.

Jeff hopes that his books for kids will help children realize they have the power to change the world. Jeff says, “Sometimes I think that young people don’t think they matter. But everyone leaves behind an ecological footprint. (An ecological footprint is a measure of how much of Earth’s resources we each consume.) I think it’s important that people recognize that— realize that every day, you are going to do something that impacts the world. Do you want that impact to be positive or negative?”

Jeff wants kids to begin taking small steps toward saving Earth’s resources. Remember: every step is a step in the right direction! You can begin doing this by just looking at your daily habits.

For example, think about the plastic water bottles from which we all drink. Drinking a bottle of water provides you with the liquid your body needs to survive. But at the same time, by drinking water out of a plastic bottle, you are using a container that will last for thousands of years. If you drink that water through a straw, you are using even more plastic that will remain on Earth far longer than you.

You can also try the Trash Challenge that Jeff often poses to kids when he gives speeches. Rather than throwing things away, save every single piece of trash you produce in a single day. That’s every water bottle, every scrap of leftover food, every wrapper, every piece of product packaging, every piece of paper . . . you get the idea! Jeff says, “No toilet paper, please! But save everything else.”

At the end of the day, you will probably be shocked at your impact with regard to waste: In any given twenty-four-hour period, the average American creates about five pounds of trash! As Jeff says, “If you think you don’t have an impact, just look at your garbage. Think about how much energy it took to create it, and where it will all end up.” Jeff says that simple examples like these can make kids realize firsthand how much of an effect they have on Earth’s health.

Jeff ’s kids’ books also explore the idea that all of Earth’s creatures play an important role in their own ecosystem. He worries that many people judge animals: they think some are better, more important, or more valuable to the world than others. “I don’t look at animals as one being nice and one being bad—the pretty feathers of a bird as opposed to the fangs of a rattlesnake,” Jeff says. In Jeff’s mind, all animals are created equal! Jeff adds, “It’s important to understand that no one creature is greater than another. All species are significant and have earned a place at the table of life.”

To see this in your everyday life, Jeff urges kids to look in their very own yards and communities. You might find a frog in a stream, a bald eagle in a tree, a mountain lion, a bear, or a box turtle. It’s easy for everyone to recognize the importance of saving tigers or monkeys. But in your community, it’s unlikely that it is a tiger that needs saving. Instead, it could be a local animal species or a particular habitat. There are examples of wildlife failures everywhere. But there can also be examples of success! And that part is up to us.

Jeff wants others to know that for many threatened species and habitats, we are nearly at the point of no return—but we aren’t there yet. He says, “While we live in what could end up being the dark days of conservation, we also live in a time of incredible hope.” We can still save what remains.

So what if you want to go even further than taking small steps? What if you want to help Earth in the same ways that Jeff has? Well, you can follow in his footsteps! Start by going to the sources: books, magazines, and Web sites are great resources of information. Jeff says, “Read up on areas and animals that interest you.”

Even better, interact with other people who share an interest in nature! Sign up for classes, attend nature camps, or volunteer at a local science center or preserve. And, of course, try your best to do well in school. School would have been easier for Jeff if he had been able to study hard and get better grades. Jeff reminds kids, “Your formal education is crucial. These things will help you hone in on an area of naturalism that most appeals to you. The most important thing is to be active and involved.”

Jeff firmly believes that if kids work hard and trust in themselves, there is very little they cannot achieve. There may be obstacles to achieving your dreams—there were for him! “Many people in my life thought my goals were impossible or silly and that they wouldn’t materialize. But I didn’t believe them,” Jeff says. He learned that the people who really succeed are those who are persistent. He offers, “If there isn’t a path carved out for you, blaze a new trail. Carve your
own
path; find alternative ways to get there. Always believe in yourself because no one else will. Retain personal passion, drive, and the confidence that you can do it.”

where everybody Knows Your Name

Jeff Corwin’s fans know him as the funny, charm ing face of animal conservation. But who is Jeff when the cameras have shut off? Jeff wears many hats in his life: he is a husband, a father, a runner, a chef . . . you name it! Let’s take a look inside what it’s like being Jeff Corwin!

When it comes to life experiences, Jeff Corwin has seen and done a lot! Take his television appearances for example. Not only does Jeff have his own shows, but he has been featured on
Iron Chef America, The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Today, Good Morning America, The Early Show, Access Hollywood,
and
Extra.
He even made a cameo appearance on an episode of the hit crime show
CSI: Miami
, in which he helped detectives retrieve a human foot from inside a live crocodile. Jeff won an Emmy for Best Performer in a Children’s Series, and
Men’s Journal
once called him “the world’s greatest animal show host.” Jeff appeared in
Maxim
’s fall fashion issue and on
Entertainment Weekly
’s highly regarded It List.

And then there’re the places he’s been! Jeff says, “I’ve been around the world probably five or six times. There are countries that few people go to, like Borneo, that I’ve been to many times. I go to Africa probably three or four times a year. But there are still a few places out there that I’m longing to go . . . like Antarctica and mainland China, especially to see the giant Chinese salamander.”