‘Eaten Alive’ By Anaconda For Science: Animal Lovers Livid Over Snake-Eating Documentary

Discovery has raised the bar again in terms of shows that deliver shock-value and a white-knuckle experience. The network’s latest project, Eaten Alive, features a man volunteering to be consumed by an anaconda. As macabre as this seems, Paul Rosolie, a wildlife filmmaker and noted naturalist is taking part in the extreme snake-eating stunt for science. However, animal activists are underwhelmed by the eaten alive by an anaconda show.

Rosolie has partnered with Discovery to pull off something that is sure to attract a legion of snake-loving fans. After all, taking part in a show in which the star gets eaten by a giant constrictor sounds like a novel idea. What is more, on the surface, the experiment would test the limits of science while unlocking the answers to lingering questions about snake biology — assuming the “guinea pig” survives.

The details of the show are scant, for obvious reasons, but the Eaten Alive by an anaconda trailer reveals that Rosolie dons a specially-made “snake-proof suit” with an emergency and retrieval cord that allows on-hand staff to pull him out after being eaten alive, and if he or the anaconda snake shows signs of distress.

Rosolie is only 26, but has worked in and studied the Amazon for a decade. As an avid anaconda-lover, the naturalist-turned-daredevil is donating his body to science, ehem, volunteering to be eaten alive in order to offer the species hope from becoming endangered, according to the Washington Post. But first, it’s important to understand more about its habitat. He believes that “telling the story of places like the Amazon and other threatened biomes and the species within them is a crucial link in the process of protecting them”.

The Eaten Alive by an anaconda Discovery documentary has attracted harsh criticism by animal welfare groups and nature activists, who expressed concern about the health and safety of the giant snake. While the show sounds like a provocative and benign attempt at luring viewers to the nature and etiology of snakes like the Amazon anaconda, come social media users call the expose animal cruelty.

A petition is underway that appeals to the Discovery Channel to stop the airing of Eaten Alive. As of this writing, 2,797 signatures have been captured for the effort. Moreover, some social media users are unimpressed by the wildlife documentary.

Explorer To Be Eaten Alive By Wild Snake weirdo or what!!http://t.co/lmLDgPbSGn

— Gail Smith (@GailaSmith) November 6, 2014

Rosolie shot back at critics and tried to set the record straight about the snake project. He insists the show is about education and seeking ways to protect large snakes like the anaconda, while shoring up the environment they depend on to thrive.

If u know me – I would never hurt a living thing. But you’ll have to watch #EatenAlive to find out how it goes down! http://t.co/QvxZO2dS3V

— Paul Rosolie (@PaulRosolie) November 5, 2014

Will you watch the Eaten Alive by an anaconda constrictor? The show debuts December 7 on the Discovery Channel.

[Image via: Disclose TV]