http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14663786/

‘Crocodile Hunter’ Steve Irwin killed by stingray'

Man, that does suck. Best wishes to his friends and family. :(

Bummer, he basically made nature shows interesting. So many spin offs of him came over the years.

:(

The balls of steel this guy had needs to be forever memorialized. Sorry for his wife and kids... they lived the life too though and probably knew the dangers more than anyone.

yea what Ibudin said, he made it fun to watch his show's. his work in his zoo and conservation efforts around australia where far more reaching than his show. lost a good one.

That's a real pity and extremely bad luck. His children are quite young too. :(

yes both under 10yrs old and apparently his daughter (8yrs old) was with him when this happened :(

They were treating this like a MAJOR news event this morning, interviewing experts on Stingray behavior and toxicology....

the guy was doing what he did for many years, and either he got sloppy or the Stingray reacted in an unanticipated manner, resulting in his being mortally wounded by the tail. This is indeed sad, and my sympathy to his family. But it is not such a big deal that they need to rebroadcast interviews of his on the Today show, or make it headline breaking news on Fox.

Celebrity status is becoming way overblown.

I was sad to hear this... I wish his family well.

I figured I'd share an old song my first band recorded. From fall
1998, here's The MadCats - Steve Irwin. The recording isn't perfect,
and we were just a bunch of late teens/early 20's musicians having
fun. I think it's still a good tribute.

http://www.fiveminutestilmidnight.com/Music/The%20MadCats%20-%20Steve%20Irwin.mp3

~M

Wildlife documentary maker Ben Cropp, citing a colleague who saw footage of the attack, told Time.com that Irwin had accidentally boxed the animal in. "It stopped and twisted and threw up its tail with the spike, and it caught him in the chest," said Cropp. "It's a defensive thing. It's like being stabbed with a dirty dagger."



I doubt he even seen it coming. Probably didn't realize what was going on before he was hit with the tail. Total accident..wasn't like he was provoking a viper or something.

Was more shocked to hear that he died from a Stingray, and not a 15 foot croc or python. Never liked his over-commercial shows but, is a sad thing nonetheless.

I wouldn't have been suprised to hear of his demise had it involved 20 crocodiles, but to be killed by a stingray, while just swimming, did alarm me.
Here was a guy, that died doing what he loved best. We should all be so lucky.

I used to watch his show in amazement but grew steadily tired of it. Mostly as a result of some of his political views, but hey I can't fault the man for getting behind something he believed in.

He died doing what he loved, by all appearances. He died too young, but if you have to go, I suppose it's better than being hit by a bus.

Rest in peace Crocodile Hunter. :(

I'll take the obvious path and say: with all of the stunts Mr. Irwin pulled before that, it was kind of amazing he lasted as long as he did.

One can just imagine the snakes, crocs, sharks and other animals looking at their Vbookie screens and saying: "Damnit, stingrays weren't even in the pool!"

I was surprised in the manner that he died. I wouldn't have put a stingray in the top 10 list of animals I thought might kill him. It's very sad, but very reminiscent of when I watched "Grizzley Man." It sucks that he died, and I feel badly for his family. The truth of the matter is though, if you play with fire too many times, eventually you will get burned.

My question is this.. If he had not pulled the barb out.. might he have survived?

It is sad that he died.. as he did provide me some entertainment. I mean that guy was a bonfide nutcase.. any guy that lays down next a hole and it has the most posionous snake in Australia in it is just asking for trouble...

My question is this.. If he had not pulled the barb out.. might he have survived?



From what the marine biology experts were saying, the toxins in the Stingray's tail start to immediately attack the surrounding tissues, and that most cases of being hit with the barb involve opening up the area around the wound wider to remove the bad tissue, and immediate antibiotics are a must. I am doubtful that he could have survuved this tragic accident.

He was one of my heroes, though at times I questioned his sanity and forethought (mainly when he involved his children in his dangerous activities). I enjoyed his shows and love his work for the environmental cause. He will be sorely missed.