Description
Peter Ryhiner — hero, adventurer, and romantic — was one of the world’s most active wild animal collectors. Born in Basel, Switzerland, on January 1, 1920, Peter knew by the time he was eight years old that he wanted to be a naturalist and explorer
His journeys led him around the globe, straight through Europe, South America, Africa and Asia, where he captured and sold thousands of animals to zoos and wildlife parks. His adventures were astonishing — trampled, crushed, chased, bitten, and almost drowned — the animals he sought not only provided Peter with a lucrative, though unpredictable, career, but repeatedly inspired a greater and greater curiosity and love for the wild animals of the world. Peter Ryhiner rarely carried a gun, his intention was not to harm but to study and learn and to educate others, and, in fact, he was a man with a vision well ahead of his time. As his success grew he was sought as a lecturer and made many television appearances. Soon, however, currency restrictions, conservation laws, regulations against importing or exporting many species, and transportation costs took their toll. Although increased awareness and protection of wild animals was desperately needed, new laws and higher costs meant that Peter Ryhiner and other wild animal collectors of the time gradually faded into oblivion.
