Thai elephant camp pays tribute to Crocodile Hunter

AYUTTHAYA, Thailand, Sep 5 (Reuters) An elephant camp in Thailand which iconic TV naturalist Steve Irwin planned to visit next month held a tribute to the Australian ''Crocodile Hunter'' killed by a stingray barb in a freak accident.

About 20 mahouts and a bull elephant attended a memorial service for Irwin at the Ayutthaya Elephant Palace, 80 km north of Bangkok, laying a wreath in front of a poster of him, having a minute of silence and reading a tribute.

''Steve lived life as if on the wing of the dragon,'' said Princess Rangsinopdol Yugala, sitting on an elephant covered with a red piece of cloth of the type used in ancient wars.

''His spirit matched our ancient Thai warriors who fearlessly rode the great musth elephants into battles,'' she said.

Irwin was popular in Thailand, where his show appears on a cable network and the story of his death was on the front pages of all Thai tabloids and prominent in television news shows.

Camp owner Laithongrein Meepan said Irwin had pledged to donate 26,500 dollars to a DNA project for elephants in Thailand during a visit next month to film a documentary on the lives of Thai elephants.

''He said he wanted to tell the world that Thai elephants aren't dangerous'' and was committed to fund another project to buy a piece of land for old elephants to retire on, Laithongrein told Reuters.

''He has opened pathways for people to better understand dangerous animals and their equal importance within the animal kingdom,'' Laithongrein said.

REUTERS MS RN1724