THE NEW CROC HUNTER

Robert Irwin is following in dad Steve’s fearless footsteps but his family are worried the teen is putting his life at risk trying to live up to his daredevil legacy

- LESEGO MKHIZE

HE’S a real chip offthe old block – he looks like his dad, sounds like him and even dresses like him.

And just like his dad used to, the teen spends most of his time teaching people about animals at their family-run zoo.

“I feel lucky that I get to have such an amazing family around me to help keep this legacy going that my dad started,” Robert Irwin says.

Robert (18) is the son of Steve Irwin, the Australian conservationist nicknamed the Crocodile Hunter who died in 2006 aged 44 when he was pierced in the chest by a stingray while filming a documentary in the Great Barrier Reef.

The teenager was a toddler when his dad died but he’s made it his life’s mission to take up the Crocodile Hunter’s mantle: Robert regularly performs alongside the dangerous reptiles with moves that made his dad famous.

But although Robert is making a name for himself, there’s growing concern about the boy. Those close to him are worried he’s taking things too far and putting his life in danger in a bid to live up to his dad’s legacy.

“Robert has been doing some risky things lately,” an insider says, adding his behaviour is upsetting his mom, Terri (57), and sister, Bindi (23).

“Their fear is this is hiding something deeper like it’s a way for him to connect with his dad.”

Until Robert started making headlines, Bindi was the one most in the limelight. After their dad died, she had her own TV show, Bindi the Jungle Girl, which ran for three seasons from 2007, launched a book series for young readers in 2011, and had a Barbie doll created in her image in 2018.