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Steve Irwin

by Glacier from Alaska

" I'm a proud Australian, a very, very proud Australian"
<a href=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Crocodile_Hunter_film.jpg>Steve Irwin</a>
Steve Irwin

Steve Irwin is my hero because he worked his entire life saving and relocating wildlife. Steve Irwin was born February 22, 1962 in Essendon, Australia. He moved with his parents to Queensland in 1970. His father was a wildlife expert and his mother was a wildlife rehabilitator. His mother and father started the Queensland Reptile and Fauna Park. There Steve grew up around crocodiles and other reptiles. On his sixth birthday Steve received a 12 foot scrub python from his dad. "He began handling crocodiles at the age of nine after his father had educated him on reptiles from an early age."

"Steve Irwin recalls how, even with the advent of a formal facility, the family home was itself a mini zoo and wildlife hospital, with makeshift marsupial "pouches" slung over the backs of chairs and snakes stashed everywhere."
He graduated from Caloundra State High School in 1979. He followed his father's footsteps and became a wildlife professional and crocodile trapper. Before he died on September 4th, 2006, he lived in Beerwah, Queensland.

Steve lived in Queensland for the rest of his adventurous life. He was the director of the Australia zoo and the host of Animal Planet series, "The Crocodile Hunter." He worked with his father most of his life to capture these reptiles.

"Together, this father-and-son team could boast that every crocodile at the Australia Zoo (numbering over 150) was either caught with their own hands, or bred and raised at the zoo. Steve made his name in the Queensland government's rogue crocodile relocation program where he was one of the most successful participants in this government-sponsored program, safely catching and relocating dozens of these troublesome crocodiles."
"I'm a proud Australian, a very, very proud Australian."

 <a href=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Steve_irwin_at_Australia_zoo.jpg>Steve Irwin at Australia zoo</a>
Steve Irwin at Australia zoo

"Crikey, mate. Your're far safer dealing with crocodiles and western diamondback rattlesnakes than the executives and the producers and all those sharks in the big MGM building."
I believe that quote is true no matter what because I lived out in the rough village of Slana for three years, and I can tell you this, about 10 times more people are killed in the city then in the forests of Alaska. In the city, you're bound to get yourself in trouble.
Here is another one- "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."
I think this is my favorite quote of all- "My belief is that what comes across on the television is a capture of my enthusiasm and my passion for wildlife."

In the year 1991, Steve fell in love with Terri Irwin, who was one of the park visitors. Terri was actually on vacation from her own wildlife rehab center in the U.S. Terri and Steve married eight months later, the pair opted to go crocodile trapping for their honeymoon.

They invited a camera crew along to film the expedition, which later become the first episode of their hit television show, "The Crocodile Hunter." In 2002 Steve and Terri played themselves in Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course, a fictional tale of wildlife conservationists battling crocs and rogue CIA agents to retrieve a fallen satellite.
In 1998, the couple's family enlarged with the addition of baby Bindi Sue Irwin. Their daughter was named after Bindi, one of their favorite female crocs, and their beloved dog Sui. They had another child, this time a boy named Bob. Steve said once, "There is nothing more to me than the animals I take care of, except for my family."

"Steve Irwin is responsible for starting endangered species breeding programs for the Southern Cassowary, Koalas, Fijian Crested Iguanas, Bilby Rhinoceros Iguanas, Galapagos Giant Land Tortoises, Aldabran Giant Land Tortoises, Mary River Turtles, Peregrine Falcons, Komodo Dragons, and Irwin's Turtles -- a newly discovered breed named after Steve himself. He has also established breeding programs for such vulnerable species as Tasmanian Devils, Wombats, Echidnas, Red Kangaroos, Asian Small-Clawed Otters, Queensland Womas, Death Adders, Rusty Monitors, Canopy Goannas, Yakka Skinks, Reticulated Pythons, Burmese Pythons, Australian Green Pythons, Sea Snakes, Black Cockatoos, Jabirus, Curlews, and his beloved Saltwater Crocodiles. But the most precious of all his accomplishments is Steve Irwin's ability to educate and entertain. He has single-handedly raised conservation awareness across the globe. His message has literally gotten to millions of people in many different languages. For that, we will always be grateful."
Petition to support Steve Irwin

Steve died when filming another episode of the "Crocodile Hunter." Steve went to a reef on Australia's northeast coast. A sting ray felt a little uneasy when Steve came to close. It swam up to him and cut his heart open with its barb. People loved Steve so much and were so mad that the local fisherman started killing stingrays. That is how much people cared for him.

I recognize Steve Irwin as the world's only true Crocodile Hunter. He had a passion to educate, but more importantly he had a passion and an obsession to do the thing he loved most, catching crocs!
Crikey!

Page created on 4/5/2007 12:00:00 AM

Last edited 4/5/2007 12:00:00 AM

The beliefs, viewpoints and opinions expressed in this hero submission on the website are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs, viewpoints and opinions of The MY HERO Project and its staff.

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