Terri Irwin backs OSU whale research
Noted conservationist Terri Irwin said that her late husband, "Crocodile Hunter" Steve Irwin, always encouraged her to try new things, even things that she never thought possible.
"I've never had an affinity for the ocean. In fact, it scares the daylights out of me," she confessed recently. But when her husband became more interested in marine animals, they bought a boat. "Steve called the vessel 'Croc I.' I suggested that we rename the boat 'For Sale,'" she said.
Today, Terri Irwin owns an entire whale watching company and is preparing to embark on two ocean research expeditions in collaboration with OSU's Marine Mammal Institute.
Through the three year agreement, Irwin and the Australia Zoo will provide funding for research trips to study endangered humpback whales. The first two trips, expected to cost $250,000 each, will be to American Samoa and the Alaskan Aleutian Islands. Irwin and her two children, 9-year-old Bindi and 4-year-old Bob, will accompany the research team for part of the expeditions to film segments for Discovery Channel shows.
"It's very interesting how things turn out," said Irwin, who grew up in Eugene, Oregon, before moving to Australia. "Here I am, a dyed-in-the-wool Duck, aligning myself with the Beavers."
Irwin emphasized that the funding didn't come from her personally but from the hundreds of people who made donations to support Steve Irwin's legacy after his death in 2006. She decided to make this gift to OSU because of her appreciation for the work of Institute Director Bruce Mate.
"He is definitely to whales what Steve was to crocodiles," she said.
Calling the agreement "a new step in the global effort to protect whales," OSU President Ed Ray said the university was proud to be associated with the Irwin family's conservation work.
"The values they stand for in their television shows are the same ones they practice in real life: kindness and compassion for animals and working for their protection," he said. "We all look forward to a long and productive relationship with the Irwins and the Australia Zoo."
Read more:
Irwin, OSU announce funding for whale studies (Oregonian)
Irwin, OSU team up on whale research (Corvallis Gazette-Times)
OSU whale research gets help from down under (OPB)
Marine Mammal Institute website
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