page_title: Steve Irwin
section_title: The Crocodile Hunter and related work
hierarchical_section_title: Steve Irwin / Career / The Crocodile Hunter and related work
caption_attribution_description: Steve Irwin feeding a crocodile at Australia Zoo.Steve Irwin (RIP)
context_page_description: Stephen Robert Irwin, nicknamed "The Crocodile Hunter", was an Australian zookeeper, television personality, wildlife expert, environmentalist and conservationist.
  Irwin achieved worldwide fame from the television series The Crocodile Hunter, an internationally broadcast wildlife documentary series which he co-hosted with his wife Terri. Together, the couple also hosted the series Croc Files, The Crocodile Hunter Diaries, and New Breed Vets. They also co-owned and operated Australia Zoo, founded by Irwin's parents in Beerwah, about 80 kilometres north of the Queensland state capital city of Brisbane.
  Irwin died on 4 September 2006, after being pierced in the chest by a stingray barb while filming in Australia's Great Barrier Reef. His death became international news and was met with expressions of shock and grief by fans, the media, governments, non-profit organizations, and other celebrities. Numerous parks, zoos, streets, and an asteroid have been named in his honour. The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society named its island-class patrol vessel MY Steve Irwin after Irwin. His widow Terri Irwin, with whom he had two children, continues to operate Australia Zoo.
context_section_description: Steve and Terri spent their honeymoon trapping crocodiles together. Film footage of their honeymoon, taken by John Stainton, became the first episode of The Crocodile Hunter. The series debuted on Australian TV screens in 1996 and made its way onto North American television the following year. The Crocodile Hunter became successful in the United States, the UK, and over 130 other countries, reaching 500 million people. Irwin's exuberant and enthusiastic presenting style, broad Australian accent, signature khaki shorts, and catchphrase "Crikey!" became known worldwide. Sir David Attenborough praised Irwin for introducing many to the natural world, saying "He taught them how wonderful and exciting it was. He was a born communicator."
  American satellite and cable television channel Animal Planet ended The Crocodile Hunter with a series finale titled "Steve's Last Adventure." The last Crocodile Hunter documentary spanned three hours with footage of Irwin's across-the-world adventure in locations including the Himalayas, the Yangtze River, Borneo, and the Kruger National Park. Irwin went on to star in other Animal Planet documentaries, including Croc Files, The Crocodile Hunter Diaries, and New Breed Vets. During a January 2006 interview on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Irwin announced that Discovery Kids would be developing a show for his daughter, Bindi Sue Irwin – a plan realised after his death as the series Bindi the Jungle Girl.
caption: Irwin feeding a crocodile at Australia Zoo
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