Prince William Has a New Namesake — and It Might Be The Most Unusual Honor of His Life
Prince William's popularity among royal fans was proved once again after being bestowed with a special honor.
Royalty has influential power. Royal fans want to dress up like Kate Middleton and Princess Diana. They want to support causes endorsed by Prince William and King Charles. But the royals’ hold over the people was recently revealed after William was bestowed with an amusing honor by fellow environmentalist Robert Irwin.
On Tuesday, the Australian TV presenter named a 12-foot, 6 inches long saltwater crocodile ‘Prince William’ in honor of the Prince of Wales’ "remarkable commitment to conservation and to mark the halfway point of The Earthshot Prize." The ferocious reptile was the 300th crocodile tagged in the “world-leading research project” at the Steve Irwin Wildlife Reserve. William’s 'croc' namesake has been fitted with a small tracker using Steve Irwin’s techniques and is set to provide “a decade of invaluable data” to help aid the conservation of its species and ecosystem. “It’s an incredible milestone, and a reminder of how research can contribute to conservation over generations,” Robert wrote in the caption of his social media post.
The Prince of Wales gave his stamp of approval to the crocodile’s royal christening by liking the post on Instagram through his and Middleton’s institutional page, according to reports. The crocodile is also fast receiving love from royal fans who appeared willing to let go of their fears just because it is named ‘Prince William’. One user on X wrote, “Absolutely haaaate reptiles...Except you Prince William. Beautiful baby boy,” while another added, "Hilarious I love it." One X user mentioned, "What a well-deserved honor & and a very fitting one. Prince William the crocodile will be a great addition to conservation history!" Another pointed out, "Perfect choice. He is exactly double the height of HM Prince William." One X user had an interesting suggestion, "Love it, maybe one day you could name a Lion after Prince William."
William will be traveling to Mumbai, India, at the end of this year for the Earthshot Prize ceremony. The Princess of Wales is expected to join him, marking her second international work trip after cancer remission. After Irwin named a crocodile after William, many royal fans urged the conservationist to convince the prince to bring the Earthshot Prize to Australia next year.
William and Robert had joined forces earlier this year for an event on tackling climate change as part of London Climate Action Week. The duo commuted to the London Guildhall by an electric bus. The Prince of Wales discussed the positive impact of the Earthshot Prize, launched as a 10-year scheme in 2020, which has now reached its midpoint. Robert highlighted the need for “urgency and optimism” in protecting the environment.
“One day people will look back at this decade and ask: when the evidence was clear, what did we do with it? When we saw forests being restored, did we help restoration spread? When we saw clean air policies working, did we help other cities follow?” William addressed the guests during the event via the BBC.
