Alan Rabinowitz
grew up as an extreme stutterer in the Bronx. As a kid, the only
beings he could relate to were animals -- because they couldn't
talk, just like him. Flash forward 40 years and Alan is still
in the Bronx. He's the director of Science and Exploration for
the Wildlife Conservation Society, based at the Bronx Zoo. For
most of his adult life, he has traveled throughout remote areas
of the world, and has even lived for months at a time with local tribes.
Alan works to set up preservation systems for both animals and
their habitats, such as the jaguar of Central America and the
tigers of Asia.
On his most
recent trip, which he writes about in his new book, "Beyond
The Last Village: A Journey Of Discovery In Asia's Forbidden Wilderness,"
Alan trekked into the depths of Myanmar, or Burma. He discovered
a new species of deer, called the "leaf deer," so tiny
that hunters roll its body in a leaf after they kill it. After
all the exotic trips of Alan's career, this was the one that changed
his life -- and even saved his marriage.
