Irwin and his friend were killing time during a rain delay when they discovered the eight-foot-wide stingray Staff members from the Australia Zoo console each other as they observe tributes outside the zoo on September 6, 2006, following the death of Steve Irwin Photo: Heather Faulkner/AFP via Getty Images Little did he know that it would be an ocean creature - one that’s not even considered to be all that dangerous - that would ultimately take his life in a freak ocean accident on September 4, 2006, at the age of 44. “I believe that the time has come where if we don't get animals into people's hearts, they're going to go extinct,” he told Larry King in 2004. He had already hosted a 2001 special called The Ten Deadliest Snakes in the World, so the fact that this one was called Ocean’s Deadliest didn’t faze him one bit - after all, he was committed to spreading the word about compassion for all creatures. So when he took off to film a documentary in Queensland's Batt Reef, it just seemed like another adventure.

He was married to the love of his life, American Terri Irwin (née Raines), and dad to daughter Bindi and son Robert - plus he and Terri had just plotted out a 10-year plan for Australia Zoo. His larger-than-life enthusiastic personality also paved the way to global television fame, most notably in the TV documentary series The Crocodile Hunter from 1997 to 2004.īy July 2006, Irwin was on top of the world. In 1991, he started managing Beerwah Reptile and Fauna Park, which his parents had run since 1970, and eventually changed the name to the Australia Zoo.

Irwin’s love for all creatures - and his knack for being able to handle them so skillfully - soon translated into a career. Three years later, his passion for interacting with wildlife was in full force, as he helped reign in problem crocodiles by wrestling them into a boat.

While most kids (and adults!) would shudder at the very thought of a deadly creature, it lit a spark for the young Australian. When Steve Irwin was 6 years old, he caught a common brown venomous snake.

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