Steve Irwin was killed by a stingray. 
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060904/ts_afp/australiapeopleirwinwildlife_060904052916
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060904/ts_afp/australiapeopleirwinwildlife_060904052916
Crocodile Hunter Dies
- Thread starter Cosmo
- Start date
Call me what you like but it was bound to happen IMO. It's a bit weird that it happened to be a stingray though. they're not renowned for their dangers. I would have put money that he'd be eaten by a crocodile or bitten by a komodo.
It's true, it IS very sad, especially for his wife and his kid. He was a great personality
It's true, it IS very sad, especially for his wife and his kid. He was a great personality
Yeah, he was entertaining as all get-out but if you watched enough of the show, I SWEAR, I was expecting almost half the time that he would be killed by something, it was just a matter of what was gonna do it
Stingray barb to the heart is a pretty macho way for the guy to finally go out- not that it isn't sad, but I imagine he would have wanted nothing less, if it had to happen
Stingray barb to the heart is a pretty macho way for the guy to finally go out- not that it isn't sad, but I imagine he would have wanted nothing less, if it had to happen
Steve Irwin was a different "naturalist". I don't know what formal training he had. The last program I watched, a few years ago, was a collection of out-takes where he was bitten by numerous birds, the odd snake, and several lizards. At the time, the out-takes were hilarious. I thought Steve Irwin would be taken out by a snake or a crocodile. I wasn't aware that sting rays were even that dangerous.
He talked a lot about respecting nature but if you ask me he himself didn't appear to have that much respect for it. He took undo risks.
However it's sad to hear him pass
However it's sad to hear him pass
Just dont tell the mysterons..they'll be pissed!!
sorry, yeah terrible considering all the creatures he usually knocks about with, and to be stung by a creature that hrdly ever reacts
sorry, yeah terrible considering all the creatures he usually knocks about with, and to be stung by a creature that hrdly ever reacts
#juan said:
they're not. that's the weirdest thing. Apparently only two other cases of death-by-stingray have ever been reported in Australia. The thing is he got stung in the heart. anywhere else it would have been bloody painful but survival would have been almost certain. And they're not aggresive creatures either. It's common for people to swim with them and touch them... they're very inquisitive. I remember there was one in Wollongong harbour which always came to have a look at the people on the jetty. Maybe it got fed, but still
hermanntrude said:
They've got all sorts of dangerous, poisonous creatures in Oz. Dangerous spiders, snakes. Everything. The world's deadliest creature - the box jellyfish - swims off its coast. Apparently, being stung by a box jellyfish is the most painful thing that you could possibly experience.
Crocodile hunter was victim of 'voyeuristic wildlife TV'
4th September 2006
Crocodile hunter: Aussie Steve Irwin pictured with his wife and sidekick Terri.
Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin - killed by a stingray barb through the chest - was a victim of 'voyeuristic wildlife TV', fellow experts said today.
As tributes poured in for the quirky 44-year-old. British survival expert Ray Mears said his death was a "sobering lesson".
Tribute: British survival expert Ray Mears
Mears said the Australian's death was a tragedy and his heart went out to his family.
But he added that it proved "some things in nature should be left alone".
He said: "He clearly took a lot of risks and television encouraged him to do that.
"It's a shame that television audiences need that to be attracted to wildlife.
"Dangerous animals, you leave them alone because they will defend themselves. Nature defends itself, it isn't all about hugging animals and going 'ahh'.
"It's wonderful to observe but you have to be sensible and maintain a safe distance."
Mears warned of the "gladiatorial" television of today and labelled some wildlife shows "voyeuristic".
He continued: "Television has become very gladiatorial and it's not healthy.
"The voyeurism we are seeing on television has a cost and it's that cost Steve Irwin's family are paying today."
David Bellamy called him "one of the great showmen and conservationists" and wildlife expert Mark O'Shea said it would leave an "immense hole" in the worlds of conservation and television.
Irwin, 44, was filming an underwater sequence for a television series called Ocean's Deadliest on the remote Batt Reef off the north-east coast of Australia when he was killed by a stingray barb.
Crew members aboard Irwin's boat, Croc One, called emergency services in the nearest city, Cairns, and administered cardio pulmonary resuscitation techniques as they rushed the boat to nearby Low Isle to meet a rescue helicopter.
Medical staff pronounced Irwin dead at about noon local time (3am BST), the statement said. Friends say they believe he died instantly.
Those with Irwin said he was swimming in shallow water, snorkelling as his cameraman filmed large bull rays.
Irwin's death was only the third known stingray death in Australian waters, said shark and stingray expert Victoria Brims.
Wildlife experts said the normally passive creatures only sting in defence, striking with a bayonet-like barb when they feel threatened or are trodden on.
Irwin's body was flown to a morgue in Cairns, where stunned family and friends were gathering.
His American-born wife, Terri, was told of her husband's death while on a walking tour in Tasmania, and returned to the Sunshine Coast with her two children, eight-year-old daughter Bindi Sue and son Bob, who will be three in December.
Dr Bellamy called Irwin one of the "world's great conservationists and showmen" and admitted he cried on hearing the news this morning.
He said: "He was magic and for the world of conservation and natural history to lose him is very, very sad.
"Everyone said he imitated me but if I could be as good as him I would be very proud.
"I used to be castigated by people saying I was a showman because I made jokes but what good is it preaching to the converted?"
He continued: "The thing with Steve was he mixed damn good science with showbusiness and I don't know anyone else who did that.
"I'm quite sure all the crocs in Australia are smiling, not crocodile tears, because he made them famous.
"When I heard this morning I cried, the world really has lost a very, very important natural historian."
British zoologist O'Shea said Irwin's death would leave an "immense hole" in the worlds of conservation and television.
O'Shea, who has himself presented television programmes about dangerous reptiles, said Irwin had helped "pave the way" for other people working in the field.
He said: "Although we had different styles of working and I did not know him personally, I am actually completely shocked.
"It is going to leave an immense hole. What he has done for conservation in Australia is massive."
He said that although some "university professors" might have turned their noses up at the way presenters like Irwin portrayed reptiles, he had probably inspired many people to follow a future in conservation.
"A lot of people who now want to study biology and work with animals may not have considered it before they watched him on television," he said.
Steve Irwin, the quirky Australian naturalist who won worldwide acclaim, died doing what he loved best - bringing the wonders of nature to the masses.
----------------------
Irwin seemed free of fear when it came to getting close to some of the world's deadliest creatures. While his first love was crocs, he also got up close and personal with snakes...
-------------------------
...and deadly spiders...
-----------------------
...and Sumatra tiger cubs.
-----------------------
Irwin also courted controversy. In 2004, he was widely condemned for feeding a snapping crocodile at his zoo while holding his then one-month-old baby son.
-----------------------
At a press conference, he apologised but stressed that he was a professional and at no point would he have put his child in danger.
-----------------------
He was popular across the globe - maybe not so with US chat show host Jay Leno however, when Irwin brought a guest of his own.
----------------------
His foray into all things deadly beneath the sea was the subject of his latest documentary.
--------------------
Irwin, who caught his first crocodile at the age of nine, had many close calls with rare and dangerous animals, crawling through forests and rivers around the world.
-----------------------
He boasted that he had never been bitten by a venomous snake or seriously bitten by a crocodile, although admitted his worst injuries had been inflicted by parrots. "I don't know what it is with parrots but they always bite me," Irwin once said. "A cockatoo once tried to rip the end of my nose off. I don't know what they've got against me."
**************************************************
Profile: The colourful life of Steve Irwin
4th September 2006
Australian "Crocodile Hunter" Steve Irwin died on Monday after a stingray barb pierced his chest as he was filming a underwater documentary.
The iconic naturalist and broadcaster captured the hearts and imaginations of crocodile enthusiasts the world over.
Here, we look back at Irwin's rise to fame:
Irwin was born on February 22, 1962, in the southern Australian city of Melbourne and moved to tropical Queensland state where his parents ran a small reptile and fauna park. He grew up near crocodiles, trapping and removing them from populated areas and releasing them in his parent's park.
*Irwin took over the park in 1991 and renamed it the "Australia Zoo". He met his U.S.-born wife Terri at the zoo and the footage of their honeymoon, which they spent trapping crocodiles, formed the basis of his first "Crocodile Hunter" documentary. The shows had a worldwide audience of 200 million, or 10 times the population of Australia.
*Irwin went on to make 46 of the popular documentaries which appeared on cable TV channel "Animal Planet", as well as more than 20 episodes of "The Crocodile Hunter Diaries". In 2001, he appeared alongside Eddie Murphy in the Hollywood movie Dr Dolittle 2.
*While popular with television audiences the world over, Irwin also courted controversy. In 2004, he was widely condemned for feeding a snapping crocodile at his zoo while holding his then one-month-old baby son. Later the same year, he was also criticised for disturbing whales, seals and penguins while filming in Antarctica. He was later cleared of any wrongdoing by the Australian government's environment department.
*Irwin was a guest at a barbecue in 2003 given by Australian Prime Minister John Howard for visiting U.S. President George W. Bush in Canberra.
*In June 2006, a tortoise named Harriet, one of the world's oldest animals, died at Irwin's zoo. The Giant Galapagos Land Tortoise was widely believed to have been collected by British scientist Charles Darwin in 1835. Some historians dispute this.
dailymail.co.uk
4th September 2006
Crocodile hunter: Aussie Steve Irwin pictured with his wife and sidekick Terri.
Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin - killed by a stingray barb through the chest - was a victim of 'voyeuristic wildlife TV', fellow experts said today.
As tributes poured in for the quirky 44-year-old. British survival expert Ray Mears said his death was a "sobering lesson".
Tribute: British survival expert Ray Mears
Mears said the Australian's death was a tragedy and his heart went out to his family.
But he added that it proved "some things in nature should be left alone".
He said: "He clearly took a lot of risks and television encouraged him to do that.
"It's a shame that television audiences need that to be attracted to wildlife.
"Dangerous animals, you leave them alone because they will defend themselves. Nature defends itself, it isn't all about hugging animals and going 'ahh'.
"It's wonderful to observe but you have to be sensible and maintain a safe distance."
Mears warned of the "gladiatorial" television of today and labelled some wildlife shows "voyeuristic".
He continued: "Television has become very gladiatorial and it's not healthy.
"The voyeurism we are seeing on television has a cost and it's that cost Steve Irwin's family are paying today."
David Bellamy called him "one of the great showmen and conservationists" and wildlife expert Mark O'Shea said it would leave an "immense hole" in the worlds of conservation and television.
Irwin, 44, was filming an underwater sequence for a television series called Ocean's Deadliest on the remote Batt Reef off the north-east coast of Australia when he was killed by a stingray barb.
Crew members aboard Irwin's boat, Croc One, called emergency services in the nearest city, Cairns, and administered cardio pulmonary resuscitation techniques as they rushed the boat to nearby Low Isle to meet a rescue helicopter.
Medical staff pronounced Irwin dead at about noon local time (3am BST), the statement said. Friends say they believe he died instantly.
Those with Irwin said he was swimming in shallow water, snorkelling as his cameraman filmed large bull rays.
Irwin's death was only the third known stingray death in Australian waters, said shark and stingray expert Victoria Brims.
Wildlife experts said the normally passive creatures only sting in defence, striking with a bayonet-like barb when they feel threatened or are trodden on.
Irwin's body was flown to a morgue in Cairns, where stunned family and friends were gathering.
His American-born wife, Terri, was told of her husband's death while on a walking tour in Tasmania, and returned to the Sunshine Coast with her two children, eight-year-old daughter Bindi Sue and son Bob, who will be three in December.
Dr Bellamy called Irwin one of the "world's great conservationists and showmen" and admitted he cried on hearing the news this morning.
He said: "He was magic and for the world of conservation and natural history to lose him is very, very sad.
"Everyone said he imitated me but if I could be as good as him I would be very proud.
"I used to be castigated by people saying I was a showman because I made jokes but what good is it preaching to the converted?"
He continued: "The thing with Steve was he mixed damn good science with showbusiness and I don't know anyone else who did that.
"I'm quite sure all the crocs in Australia are smiling, not crocodile tears, because he made them famous.
"When I heard this morning I cried, the world really has lost a very, very important natural historian."
British zoologist O'Shea said Irwin's death would leave an "immense hole" in the worlds of conservation and television.
O'Shea, who has himself presented television programmes about dangerous reptiles, said Irwin had helped "pave the way" for other people working in the field.
He said: "Although we had different styles of working and I did not know him personally, I am actually completely shocked.
"It is going to leave an immense hole. What he has done for conservation in Australia is massive."
He said that although some "university professors" might have turned their noses up at the way presenters like Irwin portrayed reptiles, he had probably inspired many people to follow a future in conservation.
"A lot of people who now want to study biology and work with animals may not have considered it before they watched him on television," he said.
Steve Irwin, the quirky Australian naturalist who won worldwide acclaim, died doing what he loved best - bringing the wonders of nature to the masses.
----------------------
Irwin seemed free of fear when it came to getting close to some of the world's deadliest creatures. While his first love was crocs, he also got up close and personal with snakes...
-------------------------
...and deadly spiders...
-----------------------
...and Sumatra tiger cubs.
-----------------------
Irwin also courted controversy. In 2004, he was widely condemned for feeding a snapping crocodile at his zoo while holding his then one-month-old baby son.
-----------------------
At a press conference, he apologised but stressed that he was a professional and at no point would he have put his child in danger.
-----------------------
He was popular across the globe - maybe not so with US chat show host Jay Leno however, when Irwin brought a guest of his own.
----------------------
His foray into all things deadly beneath the sea was the subject of his latest documentary.
--------------------
Irwin, who caught his first crocodile at the age of nine, had many close calls with rare and dangerous animals, crawling through forests and rivers around the world.
-----------------------
He boasted that he had never been bitten by a venomous snake or seriously bitten by a crocodile, although admitted his worst injuries had been inflicted by parrots. "I don't know what it is with parrots but they always bite me," Irwin once said. "A cockatoo once tried to rip the end of my nose off. I don't know what they've got against me."
**************************************************
Profile: The colourful life of Steve Irwin
4th September 2006
Australian "Crocodile Hunter" Steve Irwin died on Monday after a stingray barb pierced his chest as he was filming a underwater documentary.
The iconic naturalist and broadcaster captured the hearts and imaginations of crocodile enthusiasts the world over.
Here, we look back at Irwin's rise to fame:
Irwin was born on February 22, 1962, in the southern Australian city of Melbourne and moved to tropical Queensland state where his parents ran a small reptile and fauna park. He grew up near crocodiles, trapping and removing them from populated areas and releasing them in his parent's park.
*Irwin took over the park in 1991 and renamed it the "Australia Zoo". He met his U.S.-born wife Terri at the zoo and the footage of their honeymoon, which they spent trapping crocodiles, formed the basis of his first "Crocodile Hunter" documentary. The shows had a worldwide audience of 200 million, or 10 times the population of Australia.
*Irwin went on to make 46 of the popular documentaries which appeared on cable TV channel "Animal Planet", as well as more than 20 episodes of "The Crocodile Hunter Diaries". In 2001, he appeared alongside Eddie Murphy in the Hollywood movie Dr Dolittle 2.
*While popular with television audiences the world over, Irwin also courted controversy. In 2004, he was widely condemned for feeding a snapping crocodile at his zoo while holding his then one-month-old baby son. Later the same year, he was also criticised for disturbing whales, seals and penguins while filming in Antarctica. He was later cleared of any wrongdoing by the Australian government's environment department.
*Irwin was a guest at a barbecue in 2003 given by Australian Prime Minister John Howard for visiting U.S. President George W. Bush in Canberra.
*In June 2006, a tortoise named Harriet, one of the world's oldest animals, died at Irwin's zoo. The Giant Galapagos Land Tortoise was widely believed to have been collected by British scientist Charles Darwin in 1835. Some historians dispute this.
dailymail.co.uk
hermanntrude said:
I agree , This is why I say let wild life and nature be , Just last month ago we were talking about it at work , That this guy sooner or later it was going to happen , It is sad and I'm sorry for the family :-(
nah, I think to be honest, he was excellent we crocs and snakes, but when you go into the deep, it's a whole new ball game, combined with what he did with his daughter, I think the fame probably got to him and he started being cocky and a tad too complacent....it happens to everyone sadly.
Thought I should resurrect this thread.
Apparently people have been killing stingrays over Steve's death.
I don't believe two things about this:
a) why would people be THAT upset by his death. yes it's sad but really... get over it
b) why does anyone think that killing stingrays is gonna help?
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,213467,00.html
Apparently people have been killing stingrays over Steve's death.
I don't believe two things about this:
a) why would people be THAT upset by his death. yes it's sad but really... get over it
b) why does anyone think that killing stingrays is gonna help?
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,213467,00.html
Re: RE: Crocodile Hunter Dies
Bit off topic but here's how that works ... Andem set it up so that all links are automatically converted to "Link". Just dump in the web address -- without the url commands around it ... and it converts. Here's the difference:
will turn into this
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,213467,00.html
but this
will give you the underlined address as in your post.
Back to the subject ... do folks think they should air the footage of his attack and death? I'm undecided. If it were aired, I'd certainly watch it, but is that something Steve Irwin would want done? If it were most other people, I'd say no, but with him, he'd probably be delighted. Nothing like the ultimate video to give you immortality! He loved the attention in life. The only consideration is his family, but when it comes to last wishes I believe that the last wishes of the person who died need to be honoured first.
hermanntrude said:
Bit off topic but here's how that works ... Andem set it up so that all links are automatically converted to "Link". Just dump in the web address -- without the url commands around it ... and it converts. Here's the difference:
Code:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,213467,00.htmlhttp://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,213467,00.html
but this
Code:
[url]http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,213467,00.html[/url]Back to the subject ... do folks think they should air the footage of his attack and death? I'm undecided. If it were aired, I'd certainly watch it, but is that something Steve Irwin would want done? If it were most other people, I'd say no, but with him, he'd probably be delighted. Nothing like the ultimate video to give you immortality! He loved the attention in life. The only consideration is his family, but when it comes to last wishes I believe that the last wishes of the person who died need to be honoured first.