BRISBANE, Australia - Steve Irwin, the Australian television personality and environmentalist known as the Crocodile Hunter, was killed Monday by a stingray barb during a diving expedition, media reports said.

Steve Irwin, host of Animal Planet's series "The Crocodile Hunter", holds a rattle snake during Nickelodeon's 15th annual Kids' Choice Awards in Santa Monica, California in this April 20, 2002 file photo. Irwin, the quirky Australian naturalist who won worldwide acclaim, has died in a marine accident off Australia's northeast coast, local media reported on September 4, 2006. Sky Television reported that Irwin, whose television show "The Crocodile Hunter" won international acclaim and popularised the phrase "Crikey", had been stung by a sting ray. Australian emergency officials could not immediately confirm the reports. [Reuters]

Irwin, 44, was filming an underwater documentary on the Great Barrier Reef in northeastern Queensland state when the accident occurred, Sydney's The Daily Telegraph newspaper reported on its Web site.

The Australian Broadcasting Corp. said Irwin was diving near Low Isles Reef near the resort town of Port Douglas, about 2,100 kilometers (1,260 miles) north of the state capital of Brisbane when the incident happened.

Queensland ambulance service spokesman Bob Hamil confirmed that a diver had been killed by a stingray off Lowe Isles Reef, but said the person's name wasn't being released pending notification of the family.

A rescue helicopter was sent from the nearby city of Cairns, and paramedics from it confirmed the diver's death.

"The probable cause of death is stingray strike to the chest," Hamil said.

Staff at Australia Zoo, Irwin's zoo in southern Queensland, said they had heard the media reports but could not make any comment.

Irwin is famous for his enthusiasm for wildlife and his catchcry "Crikey!" in his television program, Crocodile Hunter, which was first broadcast in Australia in 1992 and has been broadcast around the world on the Discovery channel.

He rode his image into a feature film, and developed the Australia Zoo as a tourist attraction.

The public image was dented in 2004 when Irwin triggered an uproar by holding his baby in one arm while feeding large crocodiles inside a zoo pen. Irwin claimed at the time there was no danger to his son, and authorities declined to charge Irwin with violating safety regulations.

Later that year, he was accused of getting too close to penguins, a seal and humpback whales in Antarctica while making a documentary. Irwin denied any wrongdoing, and an Australian Environment Department investigation recommended no action be taken against him.