“I have no fear of losing my life. If I have to save a koala or a crocodile or a kangaroo or a snake, mate, I will save it.” – Steve Irwin

Steve Irwin, the worldwide phenom, the popular Australian television personality and conservationist known as the “Crocodile Hunter,” was killed a year ago, on September 4, 2006, by a stingray, while filming off the Great Barrier Reef. He was 44. Crikey, I miss his sense of humor on new nature shows!

Irwin’s death hit a lot of people deeply.

The man who had such a large heart for animals, kids, and people in general was killed by a stingray’s barb that went into his chest and put a hole into his heart, said the reports at the time.

It is well-established now, a year later, that Irwin was interested in cryptozoology. On August 6, 2002, Irwin was on the radio talk show, “Coast to Coast AM with George Noory,” and Noory and Irwin talked about the Yowie/Bigfoot. If he lived, and after the release of the Paul Cropper/Tony Healy book on Yowies, I wonder if he would have mounted an expedition, for his program. Sorry to never know.

As recently posted here, Steve Irwin had gone on at least one documentary television-driven search for Thylacines. He would tell people that there are some areas so remote that it is difficult to explore them fully and that if there is a small population of Thylacine they could easily go undiscovered. From the Animal Planet running of that recent program, we know Irwin concentrated on Tasmania, even though Western Australia may have the more favorable sightings, of late. (For more about the Thylacine/Tasmanian Tiger, see “70 Years: Thylacines Still Rule!”.)

Good-bye again, mate.

Our thoughts were with his kids, wife, family, and friends a year ago. They continue to be. Happy to see that they are carrying on with their important work.