WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-WY), chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW), welcomed Forrest Galante, wildlife biologist and host of Extinct or Alive on Animal Planet, to the committee. Galante was testifying before the committee at a hearing titled “Theodore Roosevelt Genius Prize: Innovative Solutions to Reduce Human-Predator Conflict."
In his written testimony , Galante highlighted his firsthand experiences witnessing human-predator conflicts. “Growing up in Africa, the conflict between predator and human is a daily struggle that I witnessed first-hand - from leopards stealing livestock to people actually being preyed upon by species like crocodiles, lions and more. Unfortunately, in the long term, the predator almost always loses as eradication has typically been the method of resolution. However, especially more recently, innovative methods of predator deterrents have begun to arise," said Galante.
Galante concluded by listing a number of innovative methods to protect both humans and wildlife while also avoiding conflict. “I'll note that understanding animal behavior and ecology of a species leads to coming up with successful deterrents. Just as we know electricity can work to deter sharks, we know based on animal behaviors what will be successful for individual species," said Galante.
