Now this deserves a "Crikey"

A lot of attention has been paid this past week to death-inducing sea creatures, given Steve Irwin's untimely death. This article, by activist David Helvarg (originally printed by the L.A. Times and reprinted on Common Dreams), uses Irwin's death to highlight even more scary ocean creatures. As Helvarg writes...

Stingrays have accounted for only 17 deaths in the last decade, fewer even than sharks, which cause an average of eight human deaths worldwide every year. (We kill 100 million of these slow-growing predators a year, according to a U.N. report.) Irwin, whose "crikey" adrenalin-fueled joy at encountering and wrestling with various wild animals will be missed by millions of TV viewers, was taking a break from his latest documentary series, "The Ocean's Deadliest," when he died. The show was to include encounters with various species of sharks, saltwater crocodiles and venomous sea snakes. Although these animals fall into the category of "charismatic megafauna" (animals we find either very cuddly or very scary), they don't come close to reflecting the ocean's true human-killers: the water itself, bacteria, jellyfish and algae.

Dirty water, bacteria, jellyfish and algae are more dangerous than hammerhead sharks and pirrahna? Yup. As Helvarg points out, warming oceans (linked to climate change) and pollution from businesses and downright evil people, are increasing the number of "harmful algae blooms" (a term I find great pleasure in saying aloud, for some reason, as it just rolls off the tongue...) in our oceans.

The warming oceans also attract more jellyfish to the surface, and certain types of these are quite poisonous. Oh, and as Al Gore pointed out this summer, and many scientists before him, warming oceans also equal bigger and badder storms, from tsunamis to hurricanes, that account for many a drowning...and drownings, according to Helvgar, are the leading cause of ocean-related deaths.

So while the media this week devours the unique nature of Steve Irwin's death, it's helpful to put the evil stingray into perspective. It's also good to note that while Irwin loved to get up close and personal with sea snakes and sharks, the man was also a prominent conservationist...something he shared with another late ocean explorer, Jacques Costeau. As Helvgar writes:

"It's not hard to imagine that, like the elder Cousteau, Irwin's joyful and hugely popular exploits might have, over time and as he aged, become a more explicit forum in which he'd challenge us to protect, restore and value the wild side of our blue marble planet. Without him, we'll have to do it on our own."