I’m in mourning today. One of my favourite conservation wallahs has met a sad end. As I overslept today it was Darwin’s comment on my last post that left me scratching my head with a sinking heart. I believe I first saw Steve Irwin on TV right after my A-levels, during which I was bedridden for a week and Rupavahini I think or ETV was carrying the Discovery Channel’s Crocodile Hunter. I frankly thought he was the shit, I mean who else can rather disingenuously say “that’s a rather large croc” and then proceed to throw himself on top of it with gay abandon and wrestle with it like it was you neighborhood Labrador.

Steve Irwin’s enthusiasm for all creatures great and small (to paraphrase James Herriot/Wight) was what really stood out about him. Both Irwin and David Attenborough are two people who have that genuine enthusiasm for nature thought they express themselves in hugely different ways. That Irwin died while filming dangerous creatures seems sadly appropriate. After all he did take some outrageous risks, I guess statistics can’t in the long run be beaten.

Steve Irwin will be sorely missed by his fans, family, colleagues and the multitude of Australian animals that probably owe their lives and survival to him. I hope his life and death was not in vain and hopefully some of the wacky and wonderful Australian species he fought so hard to protect will not go the way of the Dodo. Thank you for your contribution to the world and rest in peace, croc-hunter.