By Crikey Crocodile hunter is dead

[honestrosewater]

I'm trying to understand why he draws so much criticism about risk-taking while other people who are trained to do otherwise dangerous jobs (police officers, firefighters, pilots, astronauts, people working in biosafety labs, herpetologists working with the same exact animals as Steve) are respected for doing a job that they think needs to be done and benefits others. I suppose it might be that people think he took extra risks in order to make his work entertaining, but that's exactly what his job was. He wasn't trying to get herpetologists to care about reptiles. He was trying to reach the people who didn't already care about -- and might otherwise have killed -- the animals that he was working to protect.

I guess it's to be expected that a lot of people think what he was doing was especially dangerous and exciting. It just makes me sad to see him and his work go unappreciated. He succeeded in changing my view and knowledge of animals.

Has anyone ever heard specific criticisms of his safety practices from people who are qualified to make them?

 

[Ivan Seeking]

The only real criticism that I have heard was when he hung his kid in front of a croc. Beyond that, I expected that the risks would become greater as a function of the desire for ratings.

Irwin seemed to me like a true conservationist and he was probably a great guy. Still, you never know about these guys and the tactics used for ratings. Marty Stouffer did a series for years called "Wild America". At one point his crew rebelled and went public with all sorts of stories. Allegedly, for example, a deer found dead with its head stuck in a tree trunk was alive until placed there by Stouffer. It was made to look like a natural event, but the crew claimed that Stouffer killed the deer for a good shot. There were many similar claims but I don't know how many turned out to be true. Still, since then I have been suspicious of TV conservationists.

A buddy of mine made an interesting comment. He wouldn't allow his kids to watch Irwin. He doesn't want his kids thinking that one can approach wild animals at will.

 

[Astronuc]

Irwin had a certain flambouyance, and that always attracts criticism. There are many other herpatologists who work quietly out of the limelight, especially those who collect snake venom for anti-venom development.

Irwin was criticised for harrassing animals in Antarctica.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Irwin#Controversy

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Irwin

 

[brewnog]

Ok, it's been over a day.


It seems he'd used lots of sun cream that day, but it hadn't been enough to protect him from the harmful rays.

 

[Quadruple Bypass]

what would have happened had he not pulled out the barb from his heart? would it have been the same, or would he have died from the poison in the barb?

 

[dmoravec]

i don't think the report is out how he died yet. its assumed to be a combination of the puncture and the poison... but if it was just the puncture and he had decided to keep the barb in he still probably would have died. howstuffworks.com has an article about stingray poison.

 

[Sisyphus]

He used to be somewhat of a hero to me in my early teens. RIP =\

 

[Ivan Seeking]

Alright, after watching all of the personal tributes I'm convinved: He was a really great guy! Good, now I feel bad.

 

[Moonbear]

Alright, after watching all of the personal tributes I'm convinved: He was a really great guy! Good, now I feel bad.

They even had a show on addressing the baby issue, and now I don't even think that was as bad as the media made it out to be at the time. From a different camera angle, you could see that Steve was always between the croc and the baby, and there were about a dozen other people in that pen should anything at all go wrong.

And, in an interview, his wife Terri pointed out that when most people come home with a new baby, they immediately see how the family dog will react, but they aren't a normal family with just a dog in the backyard, they have crocs in their backyard. They weren't going to wait until the baby was old enough to wander unknowingly into a croc pen to start introducing him to crocs and teaching him to be safe around them. It starts to make more sense when you think about it that way.

I don't think his efforts to make stingrays more popular worked though.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

I don't think his efforts to make stingrays more popular worked though.

True! Now there are probably several orders of magnitude more people afraid of rays than last week.

One thing that as a long time beach goer I never knew is to pull out the spike. With those nasty looking barbs, that may not have been my first thought. I would be worried about doing more damage.

Incidently, I have a cousin who got hit by a ray while surfing. It got him in the leg and really messed him up for a good while. That toxin is nasty stuff.

 

[Rach3]

They weren't going to wait until the baby was old enough to wander unknowingly into a croc pen to start introducing him to crocs and teaching him to be safe around them. It starts to make more sense when you think about it that way.

How do you teach a baby to be "safe around crocodiles"? Does it involve martial arts?

 

[Evo]

How do you teach a baby to be "safe around crocodiles"? Does it involve martial arts?

I guess the same way you teach it to be safe around a rottweiler.

 

[hypatia]

How do you teach a baby to be "safe around crocodiles"? Does it involve martial arts?

It might, Steve was quite good in martial arts, Gaidojutsu.

 

[Moonbear]

I suppose you'd teach a baby about crocs similar to the way you'd teach them about livestock if you lived on a farm. First, they need to be familiar enough with the animal not to do anything sudden or awkward to spook it. And, constantly teach the kid respect for the animal's natural behaviors. I think kids are also less tempted to venture in on their own out of sheer curiosity if you take them to an animal with you and when you know it is safer to be near them (like when they are already full) so they can satisfy their curiosity without needing to sneak in without you.

 

[Gokul43201]

How do you teach a baby to be "safe around crocodiles"?

It's like teaching a baby to be safe around cryogenic liquids, if you've got a lot of cryogenic liquids at home.

 

[Astronuc]

I suppose you'd teach a baby about crocs similar to the way you'd teach them about livestock if you lived on a farm. First, they need to be familiar enough with the animal not to do anything sudden or awkward to spook it. And, constantly teach the kid respect for the animal's natural behaviors. I think kids are also less tempted to venture in on their own out of sheer curiosity if you take them to an animal with you and when you know it is safer to be near them (like when they are already full) so they can satisfy their curiosity without needing to sneak in without you.

But a baby? I think that was a nutty stunt, and I would have to question his judgement. That is no place to carry a baby.

No one in there right mind would would up to a bear in a national park with a baby in there arms so the baby could 'get the experience' with nature. On the other hand, I've seen plenty of idiots putting themselves (and others) at risk approaching wild animals, even after being repeatedly warned not to do so. Once in a while, some people are seriously injured or killed.

 

[chroot]

I don't really think infants have the capacity to be taught about the behaviors of crocodiles.

- Warren

 

[Ivan Seeking]

It is said that the vikings threw their babies in the water and were left sink or swim.

It could have been worse.

 

[LeBrad]

But a baby? I think that was a nutty stunt, and I would have to question his judgement. That is no place to carry a baby.

No one in there right mind would would up to a bear in a national park with a baby in there arms so the baby could 'get the experience' with nature. On the other hand, I've seen plenty of idiots putting themselves (and others) at risk approaching wild animals, even after being repeatedly warned not to do so. Once in a while, some people are seriously injured or killed.

I love how all of a sudden everybody except for Steve is an expert in crocodile safety. It's like the math guy who turned down the Fields Medal. The only person qualified to judge the safety of the baby was Steve. And after seeing all the stuff about him and his family and how much his kids meant to him, I will never believe he would have done anything to put his baby in any danger.

 

[franznietzsche]

I love how all of a sudden everybody except for Steve is an expert in crocodile safety. It's like the math guy who turned down the Nobel prize. The only person qualified to judge the safety of the baby was Steve. And after seeing all the stuff about him and his family and how much his kids meant to him, I will never believe he would have done anything to put his baby in any danger.

Spot on .

 

[Mental Gridlock]

Irwin was criticised for harrassing animals in Antarctica.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Irwin#Controversy

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Irwin

He was chasing around penguins in circles? How does he harrass the wildlife there? I mean he puts everything back when he's done with it.

 

[honestrosewater]

He was chasing around penguins in circles? How does he harrass the wildlife there? I mean he puts everything back when he's done with it.

There are laws about how close you are allowed to get to the animals. Some people suspected he might have gotten too close, so there was an investigation. They concluded that he didn't break any laws, and no charges were filed.

(The case against Steve was open and shut. The only thing missing was something to charge him with. ;))

 

[Cyrus]

He was chasing around penguins in circles? How does he harrass the wildlife there? I mean he puts everything back when he's done with it.

I know a pengwin he can chase around...

 

[franznietzsche]

I know a pengwin he can chase around...

Saw that coming.

 

[Mental Gridlock]

There are laws about how close you are allowed to get to the animals...

Why's that?

 

[honestrosewater]

Why's that?

To protect the animals, I imagine. During the Cold War, an international group of scientists got together and did lots of cool work in Antarctica as part of the (18-month-long) International Geophysical Year. It was a big success, and afterwards, several countries signed the Antarctic Treaty, agreeing to use Antarctica for peaceful purposes only and encouraging scientific freedom and cooperation there. The parties hold regular meetings and have made many additions to the treaty concerning protection and conservation. It's all collectively called http://www.state.gov/g/oes/rls/rpts/ant/.

 

[luckycharms]

I surprised myself when I realized I actually felt bad about his death. By all accounts, his enthusiasm and passion was real and not an act for the camera. It was childlike, but that was exactly what made him so compelling. Over the top? Sure, but he epitomized everything I've ever liked about the Australians I've met or worked with.

And beyond the Croc Hunter the entertainer and educator, what will really be missed is Steve Irwin the conservationist. He quietly poured millions of dollars into purchasing land for habitat protection, arguably the single most important factor in helping threatened speices. Despite his fortune, he lived quite humbly and frugally and did much of his real conservation work with little or no media fanfare. From what I've read, he often bypassed the large bureaucratic charities and went straight to the ground for real, practical solutions.

I guess the only real consolation is that he died doing what he loved, in support of a cause he was passionate about. We should all be so lucky.

 

[Evo]

I guess the only real consolation is that he died doing what he loved, in support of a cause he was passionate about. We should all be so lucky.

Great post, but better not to die so young at it.

 

[Mental Gridlock]

To protect the animals, I imagine. During the Cold War, an international group of scientists got together and did lots of cool work in Antarctica as part of the (18-month-long) International Geophysical Year. It was a big success, and afterwards, several countries signed the Antarctic Treaty, agreeing to use Antarctica for peaceful purposes only and encouraging scientific freedom and cooperation there. The parties hold regular meetings and have made many additions to the treaty concerning protection and conservation. It's all collectively called http://www.state.gov/g/oes/rls/rpts/ant/.

Do these laws actually "protect" the animals? He never harmed anything. At the most he "disturbed" the wildlife. Like he interrupted their dinner to make his documentary, then he put them back.

I was trying to get to the bottom of that "contraversy" as to how he encroached on wildlife there. What's so different about Antarctic wildlife anyway? I guess he just violated a little petty law that makes no sense.

 

[Blahness]

I miss him already. He's what turned me into an environmentalist, an animal lover, an Animal Planet watcher. Like luckycharms said, his enthusiasm and true caring about the state of wildlife was so endearing.

Fan made: http://hunterjedispirit.ytmnd.com/
I actually cried.