A gigantic alligator weighing approximately 455 kg has been captured in Florida. This is the second heaviest alligator ever caught in the history of the state.
Close-up of the second largest alligator ever caught in Florida, shown hanging for length measurement. (Photo: Kevin Brotz).
U.S. Coast Guard Captain Kevin Brotz, a hunting guide from Florida Gator Hunting and Get Bit Outdoors, was out on a lake near Orlando with friends when they spotted the enormous alligator. They spent about 4 hours battling the creature, which at one point leaped out of the water between 0.9 to 1.2 meters like a blue whale.
After pulling the alligator onto the boat, they killed it and brought it ashore for weighing and measuring. This alligator weighed 455 kg and was over 4 meters long, making it the second heaviest alligator ever caught in Florida. The heaviest alligator on record weighed 473 kg and was caught in 1989.
Brotz stated that capturing an alligator of this size is extremely rare. “I have guided nearly a thousand alligator hunts, and this one is completely in a league of its own,” he said.
Florida is home to approximately 1.3 million alligators. This particular alligator was killed as part of the statewide alligator harvest program, which has been in place since 1998 to help manage the alligator population.
The hunting season typically runs from August to November. About 7,000 permits are issued each year, allowing owners to kill alligators under the authority of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. In 2022, 7,804 alligators were killed under this program.
