Ten years ago, Paul Rosolie, a conservationist from Brooklyn, New York, became known for his attempt to be eaten alive by the world’s largest snake. This bizarre incident had a significant impact on his reputation.
Rosolie has dedicated his career to studying and conserving the Amazon rainforest in southeastern Peru since he was 18. However, it was in 2014 that he gained widespread recognition as the star of Discovery Channel’s film, Eaten Alive. The show chronicled Rosolie’s supposed near-death encounter with a massive anaconda.
But the outcome was not what he had anticipated.
In an article for The Guardian, Rosolie mentioned that he was “grimly amused” by the trailers that depicted him being “eaten alive.” These trailers sparked criticism from both animal welfare activists and the general public.
As false rumors circulated, Rosolie worried about his “humble” reputation within the conservation community. This concern was particularly acute since he had recently received a United Nations Award for a wildlife film and had published a book.
Why, then, did he choose to engage in such a risky stunt?
Rosolie, now 37, explained that he had spent over a decade working in the Peruvian Amazon, an area plagued by an illegal gold “mafia.” This led to massive deforestation and increased mercury poisoning affecting local wildlife and humans who consume them.
While the harmful effects on fish and humans are well-documented, the impact on other species remains largely unknown. Rosolie had a strong desire to study the green anaconda, a species that he described as “perhaps one of the most influential players in the most biologically competitive terrestrial ecosystem on the planet.”
Rosolie had monitored these snakes for years but lacked the resources for a comprehensive study. Anacondas are challenging to research due to their size, elusiveness, and danger. They cannot be tranquilized, so the only way to study them is to physically overpower them.
When the Discovery Channel approached him, it was an opportunity for Rosolie to secure funding for his research and capture public interest.
Rosolie explained, “I was willing to try something risky and yes, maybe ridiculous, to bring attention to a place and a species I loved. I figured that if feeding myself to a snake was the price I needed to pay to try to alert the wider community about the devastation we are waging on nature, I had to accept. So on a sunny September day, I spent two hours in that claustrophobic suit, being constricted by a captive anaconda.”
Despite the outcome of the show, which he said “haunts” him due to the limited educational content, Rosolie found satisfaction in sparking conversations about snake welfare and the Amazon rainforest. “For the first time in my life, the media was talking about anacondas and the Amazon,” he said, reflecting on the public’s reaction.