Wednesday, November 5, 2003
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Wednesday, November 5, 2003 |
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FCHS grad hoping to be crowned 'King of the Jungle' By MICHAEL BOYLAN Having been a military brat and living all around the world, one would presume that Christina Davis, a graduate of Fayette County High School and a current zookeeper at Zoo Atlanta, would be comfortable anywhere in the world. The producers of the new reality series “King of the Jungle,” which airs Mondays on Animal Planet, aren’t letting any contestant get too comfortable during their 10-day stay in an undisclosed location. Davis and her fellow contestants have already had run-ins with all sorts of animals including tigers, snakes, falcons and alligators and there is most certainly more to come. Davis moved to Fayetteville and completed her last two years of high school here before attending Georgia State University and majoring in biology. Davis also spent some time working at Second Chance Wildlife Rehabilitation and Education Center and has had a wide variety of pets over the years, including dogs, cats, a gecko, a water dragon, monitors, fish and a red-tailed boa. She has worked at Zoo Atlanta for three years, starting in the educational department. She realized that she preferred working more “hands-on” with the animals though and eventually became a zoo keeper. She works with small animals and birds, which gives her a chance to do a little bit of everything. This may come in very handy on the show. “King of the Jungle” took 12 contestants to a remote area where the aspiring wildlife experts are put into real life situations with some of the world’s most exotic and dangerous creatures. The show is hosted by Jeff Corwin and features a panel of judges, including such notable animal experts as Nigel Marven, Stan Brock, Jim Boller and Joe Wasilewski. Davis describes the show as “’Survivor’ meets ‘American Idol.’ “One of the biggest challenges was knowing what the judges were looking for,” said Davis. “If they said we weren’t being brave enough, we’d go out and be too brave. Then they would say we were being too brave and we’d be too afraid.” Davis has also had to conquer her fear of heights on more than one occasion. One moment had the contestants climb trees to a log bridge where they could spy on a falcon’s nest. Davis couldn’t spill too much about the show, as it is still airing, but it was clear that she had a lot of fun. For more information on “King of the Jungle,” visit www.discovery.com.
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