Heaven's new zookeeper

...just imagine the conversations he's having with Noah.

As you no doubt have heard, Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin was killed by a stingray while shooting a segment for a series called "Ocean's Deadliest." He swam too close to one of the animals, which have a serrated, toxin-loaded barb on the top of their tails, his friend and colleague John Stainton said.

"He came on top of the stingray and the stingray's barb went up and into his chest and put a hole into his heart," said Stainton, who was on board Irwin's boat, the "Croc One," at the time.

"Today the world has lost a great wildlife icon, a passionate conservationist and one of the proudest dads on the planet," Stainton said. "He left this world in a peaceful and happy state of mind. He would have said, 'Crocs Rule'."

This news is shocking yet not surprising, if that's possible. Many times while watching the show (especially when it first got big in the early '90s), I thought that guy was crazy. Do you remember the South Park episode that depicted him? Funny stuff. Anyway, I guess the reality of how dangerous so many of his adventures were had faded as we became accustomed to the way he did stuff that seemed impossibly risky. He did it with such ease, it seemed, and appeared to be immune to the danger (apart from a few snake bites and such that he seemed to laugh off).

I guess it's a fitting end for someone who lived on the edge, but I would much rather he died a comfortable old man. I'm sure Terri and their two children (Bindi, 8, and Bob, 2) feel the same.