Nat and Shirvo of Sunrise pay tribute to crocodile hunter Steve Irwin on the 18th anniversary of his tragic death in 2006

Steve Irwin has become an Australian icon.

And on Wednesday, Sunrise presenters Nat Barr and Matt Shirvington paid tribute to the late Crocodile Hunter on the 18th anniversary of his death.

Irwin died when a stingray stabbed him in the chest while filming the documentary “Ocean's Deadliest” on the Great Barrier Reef on September 4, 2006.

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He was just 44.

Sunrise shared a picture of Irwin on the show while Nat and Shirvo talked about the fearless wildlife fighter.

“We remember this man today. Steve Irwin, the crocodile hunter, was of course famous all over the world and truly unique,” Barr said of Irwin.

“We lost him 18 years ago today. My goodness, has it been that long?” Shirvo said.

“But his legacy lives on. We celebrate his life today and of course our thoughts this morning are with Terri, Robert and Bindi,” he added.

Steve's legacy and passion for conservation was continued by his family, including through the maintenance of the Australia Zoo in the Queensland town of Beerwah, north of Brisbane.

Irwin was not only a zookeeper, but also an educator, conservationist and a world-renowned television personality. His unbridled passion and dedication to the animal world earned him an enthusiastic following around the world to this day.

In July, Robert said in an interview on the podcast “Mental As Anyone” that he enjoyed hearing anecdotes about the “Crocodile Hunter” because with each story it felt like he was “getting little pieces of him back.”

“Some people may not want to be reminded of the person they lost. Personally, I walk up to someone on the street every day and say, 'Oh, here's this story about your dad' … I welcome that. I love it,” Irwin said.

“When I see a picture or footage of Dad, I really enjoy his presence and his life at Australia Zoo. He is everywhere. The pictures and photos, the video and the audio, he is still part of my everyday life.

“I lost someone at a very young age and I love getting little pieces of them back. That's what it feels like.”

Robert said the pain of his father's death will remain, but he takes comfort in the nearly three years he spent with “the most wonderful, loyal, devoted and committed father figure you could imagine.”

“He did everything with 110 percent accuracy, care and intelligence,” Robert said.

“The building blocks of my life were… permeated by my father’s passion and enthusiasm.

“This is something I will carry with me forever.”

Robert also revealed that his family life is “uneventful.”

“What we do is absolutely crazy. We jump on crocodiles, we rescue wildlife, we do this and that, but as far as the Irwin family dynamic goes, we're… just vanilla ice cream,” he said.

“We're so boring. But that's great. That's the way it's supposed to be. There's nothing wrong with having a boring family dynamic. That's exactly what you're aiming for.”

“It's never boring with us, but there's never any drama, there's never any arguments and quarrels and this and that, it's just this close-knit family unit.”