Two Florida hunters have captured a 765lb alligator with their bare hands after spending several months tracking it down.
Keith Kelley and Kelly Sziy, both from Jacksonville, successfully lured the 13ft-long creature, nicknamed 'Lumpy', with bait at St John's River in the early hours of last Sunday.
With just 'a rope, a few hooks and their strength', they waded into the water, before pouncing on the alligator and dragging it on to the shore. They later killed it to use for processed meat.
On Thursday, Mr Kelley said he was delighted that he and Mr Sziy had finally captured 'Lumpy' following months of tracking the beast at the spot in St John's County.
'He got close enough to where I guess he couldn't withstand the bait. Finally, it was just his night,' he told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
'[I] put some leather gloves on and I told Kelly, "we're going to have to get him by hand and that's all it is to it. Hang on".
Following the capture near Riverdale, where alligators are as common as crocodiles are in the Northern Territory, Mr Kelley and Mr Sziy took 'Lumpy' to Alligator Farm to be measured.
Unsurprisingly, the enormous animal broke the scales at 765lb and a staggering 13 feet long, according to ActionNewsJax.com.
'Usually when people say they've seen a large alligator, it's usually around 11 feet or so,' said Jim Barlington, the facility's curator of reptiles. 'So, 13 feet, close to 13 1/2 feet is definitely rare.'
Mr Kelley and Mr Sziy later killed the alligator, before posing for a series of photos and uploading them to Facebook. The creature's head will now be mounted on Mr Kelley's wall.
Officials at Florida Fish and Wildlife are currently investigating whether the alligator is the largest in the state to have been captured by hand.
In the meantime, Mr Kelley said he and Mr Sziy are 'looking forward to their next large and lumpy catch.
'I don't know if there's another one out there, but we'll definitely be looking,' he said.
Keith Kelley and Kelly Sziy, both from Jacksonville, successfully lured the 13ft-long creature, nicknamed 'Lumpy', with bait at St John's River in the early hours of last Sunday.
With just 'a rope, a few hooks and their strength', they waded into the water, before pouncing on the alligator and dragging it on to the shore. They later killed it to use for processed meat.
On Thursday, Mr Kelley said he was delighted that he and Mr Sziy had finally captured 'Lumpy' following months of tracking the beast at the spot in St John's County.
'He got close enough to where I guess he couldn't withstand the bait. Finally, it was just his night,' he told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
'[I] put some leather gloves on and I told Kelly, "we're going to have to get him by hand and that's all it is to it. Hang on".
Following the capture near Riverdale, where alligators are as common as crocodiles are in the Northern Territory, Mr Kelley and Mr Sziy took 'Lumpy' to Alligator Farm to be measured.
Unsurprisingly, the enormous animal broke the scales at 765lb and a staggering 13 feet long, according to ActionNewsJax.com.
'Usually when people say they've seen a large alligator, it's usually around 11 feet or so,' said Jim Barlington, the facility's curator of reptiles. 'So, 13 feet, close to 13 1/2 feet is definitely rare.'
Mr Kelley and Mr Sziy later killed the alligator, before posing for a series of photos and uploading them to Facebook. The creature's head will now be mounted on Mr Kelley's wall.
Officials at Florida Fish and Wildlife are currently investigating whether the alligator is the largest in the state to have been captured by hand.
In the meantime, Mr Kelley said he and Mr Sziy are 'looking forward to their next large and lumpy catch.
'I don't know if there's another one out there, but we'll definitely be looking,' he said.
Source : DailyMail , AJC
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