Steve Irwin was killed in his native Australia off the coast in the Great Barrier Reef. He was killed by a stingray's barb which jabbed straight into his heart and was pronounced dead on his research vessel "Croc 1." Only one other person in Australia's history is known to have died from a stingray attack way back in 1945. Steve was only 44.

Irwin was filming a documentary and diving in Australia's famous Great Barrier Reef when he swam over the stingray. Usually stingrays are very docile but this one considered Irwin a threat and defended itself out of fear.

Known for both his wacky stunts and exuberant TV personality as The Crocodile Hunter, he brought the world's attention to animal conservation issues especially in his native Australia. Ricky our Chihuahua often watched him on Animal Planet TV.

Steve leaves behind his American wife Terri (who co-hosted most of his shows and has been called the "Crocodile Huntress") and two young children.

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Tags: steve, irwin, crochunter, hunter, conservation, australia, stingray