Bindi Irwin pays tribute to her late dad Steve on anniversary of his death

Bindi Irwin has posted an emotional tribute to her late dad Steve on the 13th anniversary of his death.

Steve Irwin, who passed away 13 years ago today, with son Robert and daughter Bindi.

Bindi Irwin has paid tribute to her late father Steve in a touching Instagram post on the anniversary of his death.

The 21-year-old wildlife warrior, who on Father’s Day told followers to “hug the people in your life who bring light to your heart and always remember that love lasts forever”, has posted a quote in memory of her dad, simply captioned “forever”.

It’s been 13 years since the crocodile hunter’s passing, yet he remains one of Australia’s most iconic figures.

The TV personality and conservationist, who was born on February 22, 1962 and became famous around the world for his daring stunts with dangerous animals, died aged 44 in 2006 after a stingray stabbed him “hundreds of times” while filming a documentary on the Great Barrier Reef in far north Queensland.

Justin Lyons, the cameraman who witnessed Irwin’s death, told Channel 10 in 2014 that he and Irwin had left their main boat in an inflatable to find something to film for the documentary Ocean’s Deadliest when they came across a “massive” 2.5-metre stingray in chest-high water.

RELATED: Bindi Irwin on losing her father and finding love

Steve Irwin setting off to film ‘Ocean’s Deadliest’ during which he was fatally stung by a stingray.

“I had the camera on, I thought this is going to be a great shot, and all of a sudden it propped on its front and started stabbing wildly, hundreds of strikes in a few seconds,” Mr Lyons said.

“I panned with the camera as the stingray swam away, and I didn’t know it had caused any damage.

“It was only when I panned the camera back that I saw Steve standing in a huge pool of blood that I realised something had gone wrong.”

Irwin had a 5cm injury over his heart, coming out of which was blood and fluid.

“I was saying to him things like, ‘Think of your kids Steve, hang on, hang on, hang on’, and he calmly looked up at me and said, ‘I’m dying’, and that was the last thing he said.”

After Irwin’s death, thousands of fans visited Australia Zoo to pay tribute — and he has since had a wildlife reserve, a road and a turtle, among other things, named after him.

RELATED: Bindi reveals who will walk her down the aisle on her wedding day

Robert and Terri Irwin with Bindi and her fiance Chandler after they announced their engagement.

Today Australia Zoo is home to more than 1200 animals, the family runs a wildlife hospital, and Irwin’s foundations continue to help people and animals wherever they can.

Irwin was posthumously honoured with a star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame in 2018, and Bindi, her mum Terri, brother Robert — a keen photographer — and fiance Chandler have continued to carry on Irwin’s legacy.

The crocodile hunter had emotionally declared before his unexpected death that his “ultimate goal” and “proudest moment” would be seeing Bindi and Robert take over his wildlife mission.

“We’re doing it in our own way, but you can feel Dad’s spirit in everything we do,” Bindi told Stellar in July this year.

“I’ve found such comfort in being able to follow in his footsteps.”