3. -CRIKEY!
It is a word made famous
by one man, the
Crocodile Hunter, Steve
Irwin. A man who lived
in his khakis and spent
most of his time darting
the bite of a venomous
snake, wrestling a nine
foot croc or anything else
that was, well, simply out
of the ordinary. He had
an infectious personality
that was saturated with
enthusiasm and a love for
life and wildlife alike.
4. Childhood
Steve grew up loving all wildlife, especially reptiles.
He caught his first venomous snake (a Common
Brown) at the tender age of six.
By the time he was nine-years-old, he was helping
his dad catch small problem crocodiles hanging
around boat ramps by jumping on them in the
water and wrestling them back into the dinghy.
5.
6. In the 1980s Steve spent months on end living
in the most remote areas of far North
Queensland catching problem crocodiles
before they ended up shot by a poacher’s
bullet.
By 1980, the family wildlife park was called
the ‘Queensland Reptile and Fauna Park’ and
where Steve called home.
8. A controversial incident
occurred during a public show on 2 January 2004, when
Irwin carried his one-month-old son in his arm while
hand-feeding a chicken carcass to Murray, a 3.8-metre
crocodile. The infant was close to the crocodile, and
comparisons were made in the press to Michael
Jackson's dangling his son outside a German hotel
window. In addition, some child welfare groups and
animal rights groups criticised his actions as
irresponsible. Irwin apologised on the US NBC show
Today
9.
10. FUN FACTS
Steve and Terri filmed their first wildlife documentary
on their honeymoon! That's right, they shared their
honeymoon with a camera crew and caught rogue
crocs!
Steve and Terri's daughter Bindi Sue was named after
Steve's favourite crocodile Bindi and his dog Sui!
Steve's dad gave him a video camera so that he could
film himself catching crocs when he was in North
Queensland... it was these films that inspired producer
John Stainton to start the Croc Hunter series!
13. Honors
In 1997, while on a fishing trip on the coast of
Queensland with his father, Irwin discovered a new
species of turtle. Later given the honor of naming the
newly discovered species, he named it Irwin's turtle
In 2001, Irwin was awarded the Centenary Medal by
the Australian government for his "service to global
conservation and to Australian tourism“
In 2001, Irwin was awarded the Centenary Medal by
the Australian government for his "service to global
conservation and to Australian tourism"
14. The Tragedy
On 4 September 2006, Irwin was killed at the age of 44
while snorkelling at Batt Reef (part of the Great Barrier
Reef).
Irwin approached a stingray allegedly 8 ft wide in chest-
deep water from behind in order to film it swimming
away.
According to the only witness to the attack, the fish
reacted to Irwin as if a shark was attacking, striking him
several hundred times in the body with its tail spine in a
few seconds.
Irwin initially believed he only had a punctured lung but
the spine had pierced his heart and he bled out
16. Gone but never forgotten
Steve Irwin Day, celebrated each year on 15 November,
is an annual international event honouring the life and
legacy of the one and only Crocodile Hunter, Steve
Irwin.
On 1 January 2007, Glass House Mountains Road, the
road that runs by the Australia Zoo, was officially
renamed Steve Irwin Way.
The Australian government announced in July 2007
that a 135,000-hectare national park was being created
in northern Queensland and would be named the
Steve Irwin Wildlife Reserve.
