| Austin Stevens | |
|---|---|
| Born | 19 May 1950 Pretoria, South Africa |
| Occupation | Herpetologist, Wildlife photographer |
| Website | |
| http://www.austinstevens.net/ | |
Austin James Stevens (born 19 May 1950) is a South African-born herpetologist and wildlife photographer best known for hosting a series of snake documentaries. Austin is also the author of 2 books.
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Austin Stevens was born in Pretoria, South Africa and became interested in snakes at the age of 12. By the time he finished school, his reptile collection included some of the most exotic and venomous species in the world.
His mother lost a lung in a car accident as a girl, was often ill, and died when Stevens was in his thirties; his father owned a small typewriter repair business. He traces his adventurous streak back to his grandfather from Bristol, England—also named Austin James Stevens—part founder of the AJS Motorbike Corporation, but later took the boat to Africa.[1]
Austin got heavily into motorbikes and motorbike gangs and spent years riding around being a self described "loose cannon". He gave up the world of motorbikes in 1974 after a disastrous near fatal accident during a race. What saved him, he says, was being offered a job at the Transvaal Snake Park, near Johannesburg, which rekindled his passion for wildlife. Austin took up the position as curator of reptiles at the Transvaal Snake Park, where he spent the six years undergoing hands-on training to become a fully qualified herpetologist.
After Austin left the Transvaal Snake Park he took up a position as Curator of Herpetology at the Nordharzer Schlangenfarm in Germany, a park which he helped design and bring into operation before later again returning to Africa, where he took up the position as Curator of Reptiles at the Hartebeespoort Dam Snake and Animal Park. In an effort to generate funds and public interest in the plight of African gorillas, Austin set a record by spending 107 days and nights in a cage with 36 of the most venomous and dangerous snakes in Africa. On the 96th day, he was bitten by a cobra, but to many people's amazement he refused to leave the cage and was instead treated in the cage. Although he was very sick at that time, Austin completed the 107 days and beat the existing Guinness World Record (documented in the Guinness Book of Animal Records). This world record has never been duplicated or broken, though there have been a number of other attempts at similar records (records attempted with different conditions and snakes to Austin's record.) From this experience, Austin authored a book entitled Snakes in my Bed.
Thereafter, Austin moved to Namibia where he became involved in wildlife photography and film making.
Nowadays Austin's career in herpetology includes presenting a series of TV programmes about reptiles and other wild animals. The main programme Austin Stevens: Snakemaster is also known as Austin Stevens: Most Dangerous on Animal Planet, and Austin Stevens Adventures broadcast on Animal Planet and five in the United Kingdom. His show show was also presented in high definition on HDNet under the title Austin Stevens Adventures in the U.S. in the fall of 2009 [1]. His latest book The Last Snake Man was published in the UK by Noir Publishing [2].
Near the end of 2008, Stevens launched his own official website www.austinstevens.net and in March 2011 he launched his own Twitter page under the username 'AustinSnakeman.' Stevens has warned his fans of impostors on the internet and stated that he does not have a Facebook page.
Near the end of 2011, Austin launched a range of online products featuring his photography at http://astevensadmin.redbubble.com The range includes greeting cards, post cards, matted prints, laminated, mounted and framed prints, small canvas prints, small posters, calendars, stickers and men's, women's and children's t-shirts and hoodies.
Stevens never received any formal photography training, and says he does not have a large collection of camera gear, preferring to keep his kit compact. He describes himself as a 'Canon fan' who has used various brands of cameras since the 1970s. In some "Adventures" episodes he is seen using a Samsung GX-10, which he says he uses with both Samsung and Pentax lenses. He also uses a Samsung Pro815 and an unspecified Sony Cybershot model for general use.[2]
Stevens divides his time between Namibia to Australia. Stevens stays fit and sharp by practising martial arts, in particular, nunchaku. He claims it keeps his reflexes heightened when working with venomous snakes.
In December 2007, Austin Stevens married his second wife Amy, 34 years his junior, a young python keeper from Australia. [3]
He has a passion for cars, especially the Mazda RX series. Stevens's latest acquisition is a 2.6 litre Mazda pickup truck, adapted for bush travel.
Some of his credits:
Books:
DVDS: