By Ryan Parsons | Image property of respective holders.
Rest in Peace: Steve Irwin
Ever since he caught our attention with "Crikey!," fans have -- always in humorous fashion -- assumed that Irwin's days were numbered. Even with his high energy and love for the animals, nobody can predict when a wild animal would spell doom for the "Crocodile Hunter" host.
Most figured that, if Steve were to meet his end by the hand of a wild animal, it would be by the same Crocs he had come to love.
Nobody, however, ever thought a stringray to be Irwin's deadliest match.
Steve Irwin Died Monday Filming Off the Great Barrier Reef
According to AP, Steve Irwin, the hugely popular Australian television personality and conservationist known as the "Crocodile Hunter," was killed Monday by a stingray while filming off the Great Barrier Reef. He was 44.
Irwin was at Batt Reef, off the remote coast of northeastern Queensland state, shooting a segment for a series called "Ocean's Deadliest" when he swam too close to one of the animals, which have a poisonous barb on their tails, his friend and colleague John Stainton said.
"He came on top of the stingray and the stingray's barb went up and into his chest and put a hole into his heart," said Stainton, who was on board Irwin's boat at the time.
Irwin was famous for his enthusiasm for wildlife and his catchword "Crikey!" in his television program "Crocodile Hunter." First broadcast in Australia in 1992, the program was picked up by the Discovery network, catapulting Irwin to international celebrity.
He rode his image into a feature film, 2002's "The Crocodile Hunters: Collision Course" and developed the wildlife park that his parents opened, Australia Zoo, into a major tourist attraction.
"The world has lost a great wildlife icon, a passionate conservationist and one of the proudest dads on the planet," Stainton told reporters in Cairns. "He died doing what he loved best and left this world in a happy and peaceful state of mind. He would have said, 'Crocs Rule!'"
Zoos around the globe have already begun to set up tributes for the fallen host. If you happen to drive by one give a honk.
Add to Heffee!
