I've thought for a long time that Animal Planet has been dropping the ball on something. You see, they're supposed to be a whole network dedicated to Animals. Large, small, domesticated, wild - all of them. And they generally do a great job of that. They have specials about all kinds of creatures, from the littlest bugs to the largest whales. But they have overlooked one kind of animal, and it's kind of a biggie. Of course, since it's me talking, I'm referring to parasites.
I mean, come on - it's the most popular lifestyle on earth (just ask Carl Zimmer). How can a channel dedicated to animals of all kinds ignore the largest group of animals we have?
They can't - and they aren't. This summer, Animal Planet is premiering a new series called "Monsters Inside Me," a lovely foray into the disgusting, fascinating, and dangerous parasites that live inside people. As they write in their press release for the show:'
Not all monsters are big. In fact, some of the most deadly organisms in the world are invisible to the human eye. Using size to their advantage, microscopic parasites quietly invade their hosts without fear of inhibition or detection. Once inside, these creatures wait in concealment for months, or sometimes years, before strikingâall the while, silently feeding off their victims...
âMONSTERS INSIDE ME is part horror movie, part medical detective story,â says Marjorie Kaplan, president and general manager of Animal Planet. âParasites live everywhereâour water, soil and even in the air we breath. When it comes to these stealth creatures, thereâs no where to hide.â
It's as if they heard my unspoken demands and decided to make an entire series to placate my whims - and, just to let me know that it's just for me, they're premiering it next week on July 1st - MY BIRTHDAY. It's the best birthday gift Animal Planet could have gotten me*!
Monsters Inside Me is hosted by biologist Dan Riskin, who has a PhD from Cornell and currently works at Brown University studying the only mammalian parasite in the world - the Vampire Bat. He, along with medical professionals, probe into real cases of people infected with parasites large and small, from annoying to life-threatening.
Anyhow, mark your calendars for July 1st at 9 PM EST! I'm also working on getting you some special sneak peaks or behind the scenes info from Animal Planet... so stay tuned!
*besides a nice, face-to-face interview with Dave Salmoni - HINT HINT
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