10-Foot Alligator Spotted Munching On Big Fish In Florida

Sarasota FL

02 February, 2022

3:37 PM

Description

SARASOTA, FL — A woman enjoying a stroll through Myakka River State Park in Sarasota recently got quite the surprise when she stumbled upon a massive gator in the middle of lunch, chomping down on a rather large fish. "I was born and raised in Everglades City, FL, but this is the first time I've witnessed a gator with a very large snook," Robin Austin of Venice told WFLA-TV. "To see that large a snook at Myakka State Park surprised me as well." Of course, what do you do when you stumble upon something you don't see every day? You snap a picture— which is exactly what Austin did. She then posted the stunning photos to her Facebook page Sunday. She estimates that the gator was at least 10 feet long and the snook around 3 feet long. According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, female alligators rarely exceed 10 feet in length but males can grow much larger. The Florida state record for length is a 14 foot 3-1/2 inch male from Lake Washington in Brevard County. The Florida record for weight is a 1,043 pound (13 feet 10-1/2 inches long) male from Orange Lake in Alachua County. In Florida waters, snooks may grow to 48 inches and 38 pounds, the commission said.