• Archangel1313@lemmy.ca
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      21 hours ago

      One of his most famous lines was, “Oh, crikey! Look at how mad he is!”, while poking an animal with a stick.

      • Cypher@aussie.zone
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        20 hours ago

        To the uninformed it may have appeared that way but he was an expert in handling reptiles which is typically where he said those lines.

        Few could catch and relocate animals as gently as he did… and even fewer while putting on a show that garnered significant interest in animal conservation.

        He was genuinely responsible for the repopulation of crocodiles across Australia and several species of endangered snakes.

        The showmanship was a facade. He was the real deal.

        • Archangel1313@lemmy.ca
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          18 hours ago

          Being an expert in handling reptiles, doesn’t mean he should have been handling them in the wild.

          Rule number one of wildlife conservation…look, but don’t touch.

          • Cypher@aussie.zone
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            18 hours ago

            You know he was doing relocation work in many of his videos right? Some of the snakes were captured for anti-venom and breeding programs for conservation efforts.

            He wasn’t bothering animals for shits and giggles.

            • Archangel1313@lemmy.ca
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              18 hours ago

              Oh. So, you haven’t actually watched his show? In literally every episode he handled any wildlife he happened to come across. Everything. He made a point of picking them all up so the camera could get a better look at them, before eventually letting them escape.

              He antagonized every animal he encountered for the sake of the shot he was trying to get. That’s exploitation…not conservation.

              • Cypher@aussie.zone
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                17 hours ago

                Many is not all.

                He was the most successful conservationist in Australian history so you can bitch all you like, he got results where others failed and continue to fail.

    • amniotic druid@lemmy.world
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      22 hours ago

      Wut? Lol Steve Irwin has had one of the greatest posthumous image rehabilitation in history. He may have never harmed anything, but he sure didn’t respect them either. He was pretty disliked by conservationists when he was still alive.