A group of hunters captured a massive alligator weighing over 500 pounds at the start of Alabama’s alligator hunting season on Sunday.
Taylor Douglas and his friends posed with the 12-foot 9-inch alligator weighing 524 lbs in an Alabama Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division Facebook post.
“We knew we were on a big one but no one knew exactly how big he was until he first surfaced out of the water,” Douglas told USA Today. “Then everyone quickly realized the situation and it was all hands on deck
The catch now holds the title of being the largest alligator observed throughout this year’s ongoing season, reported WKRG. (RELATED: Gator Goes Full Beast Mode On Snake Hanging Out In Backyard)
“For how big he was he really did not put up much of a fight. It took us roughly one hour from the time he was hooked until the time he was dispatched,” wrote Douglas. “The biggest struggle was trying to get his body in the boat. Three Game Wardens were on a boat next to us and got to watch the entire fight.”
It took around an hour to bring the male alligator ashore, starting from the moment he was hooked to when he was finally brought onto the boat, reported USA Today.
“Our crew has been gator hunting for years now, but this is our biggest prize to date,” Douglas wrote. “It will be a hunt we all remember for years to come.”
The record for the largest alligator belongs to the Stokes alligator, captured in Alabama in 2014. It measured 15 feet and 9 inches in length and tipped the scales at over 1,000 pounds.