That camping trip your family still talks about? Science says it’s worth more than any toy under the tree.
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Bindi Irwin recently shared a video that perfectly captures the magic of the Irwin family legacy—and it involves her daughter, Grace, in the most adorable encounter you’ll see all week.
If you grew up watching Steve Irwin wrestle crocodiles and enthusiastically shout “Crikey!” at every creature he encountered, there’s a good chance you’ve been following his family’s journey ever since. And if you’re now a parent yourself, scrolling through your phone during naptime or after bedtime, this story is going to hit you right in the feels.
A Little Girl in a Pink Party Dress and Her Unlikely Best Friend
In a video posted to Instagram on February 1, Bindi shows a clip of her daughter in a pink dress as a little echidna named Bella follows her around. The scene is exactly the kind of wholesome content that makes you want to gather your own kids around the screen and say, “Look at this!”
Bindi is behind the clip in awe, revealing that Bella is new to the zoo and follows Grace wherever she goes, and exclaiming that she’s never seen an echidna be so connected to someone before.
The caption of the post is: “I’ve never seen an echidna love someone so much… 🥹❤️”
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There’s something undeniably special about watching a toddler in her pink party dress being trailed by a spiny little echidna like they’re the best of friends. It’s the kind of image that feels straight out of a storybook—except it’s real, and it’s happening at the Australian Zoo that Steve Irwin made famous.
In the comments, people were equally stunned and tickled — but no one more so than Bindi’s own mother, Terri Irwin. She wrote in the comments: “This is incredibly special. In the 33 years I’ve worked with echidnas, I’ve never seen one love somebody this much. Grace is such a special little soul.💕”
For parents who remember watching Steve form those same kinds of inexplicable connections with wildlife, seeing it manifest in his and Terri’s granddaughter feels like watching something beautiful come full circle.
Another posted: “This is so precious. I can’t wait to see these two grow up together.”
And another wrote: “i love that mum grew up in khaki & grace like imma feed the echidnas in my pink party dress 🥰”
The Legacy Continues: Three Generations of Wildlife Love
Daughter of iconic wildlife conservationist Steve Irwin, Bindi Irwin is also a wildlife conservationist, zookeeper, TV personality and manager of the Australian Zoo and often posts clips from the zoo along with her family.
For those of us who grew up watching “The Crocodile Hunter,” seeing Bindi step into her father’s shoes has been bittersweet but beautiful. She’s married to Chandler Powell, and they wed in 2020 before welcoming their daughter, Grace Warrior Irwin Powell, born in March 2021.
Yes, her middle name is Warrior. If that doesn’t tell you everything about how this family approaches life and their mission, nothing will.
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Bindi has revealed that her daughter takes after her late father, who died when Bindi was only 8 years old. Steve died in 2006 after he was pierced in the chest by a short-tail stingray barb while filming in the Great Barrier Reef.
For parents who remember exactly where they were when they heard the news about Steve’s passing, watching Grace grow up with that same fearless love of animals feels like a gift. It’s a reminder that the passion Steve shared with the world didn’t end with him—it’s alive and well in his daughter, and now in his granddaughter too.
Parenting a Tiny Wildlife Warrior: Bindi’s Approach
If you’ve ever tried to explain to a toddler why they can’t do something exciting, you’ll deeply relate to what Bindi shared about raising Grace around the zoo.
When appearing on the “Not Gonna Lie with Kylie Kelce” podcast in June 2025, she said: “There have been a lot of talks with our daughter because she’s 4 now, which is wonderful. But it also means you wanna be part of everything. So like, when we’re feeding the crocodiles, she’s like, ‘Why can’t I be there with you?’ She’s crying, ‘I just wanna feed the crocodiles!’”
Every parent reading this just felt that in their soul. The enthusiasm of a four-year-old who wants to be involved in absolutely everything is universal—though admittedly, most of us are dealing with requests to help cook dinner or fold laundry, not feed crocodiles.
“We’re like, ‘Well, this is why you can’t and why you have to wait ‘till you’re 18. But it’s really that education,” Bindi continues. “And kids are so good. They’re like little sponges. They just absorb so much information.”
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This is the part that should resonate with every parent trying to raise curious, nature-loving kids. Bindi isn’t just saying no to Grace—she’s explaining why, turning every boundary into a learning opportunity. It’s the same approach Steve took with audiences around the world: education through enthusiasm, patience, and genuine love for the natural world.
