A 12-foot alligator has been captured by trappers near the shore of a Florida beach.
The reptile was spotted Sunday night near the Mooring Yacht & Country Club on Vero Beach, as reported by Treasure Coast Newspapers.
Trapper Justin Morrison, 25, headed to the shore near Saint Christopher Lane, off State Road A1A, after a woman who had been walking her dogs called 911 to report the alligator at around 7.30pm.
The 12-foot alligator was spotted Sunday night near the Mooring Yacht & Country Club on Vero Beach, Florida. Trappers were called after a woman called 911 to report it
Trapper Justin Morrison, 25, tossed a lasso around the reptile’s neck, and jumped on its back, before tying up its limbs and covering its eyes
The full-time plumber was enlisted for the job by the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission because of his experience hunting alligators for more than a decade and trapping nuisance alligators for more than a year.
After hearing about the massive size of the alligator, he enlisted pal Garrett Abernathy’s help.
When they arrived at the beach, the alligator was in shallow water close to the shore and appeared worn out from trying to get past the waves, Morrison told TCPalm.
He tossed a lasso around the reptile’s neck, and jumped on its back, before tying up its limbs and covering its eyes, as deputies stood nearby for support.
After hearing about the massive size of the alligator, Morrison enlisted pal Garrett Abernathy’s help, who he often traps nuisance alligators with (both pictured)
Florida deputies were on the scene to support the trappers, who said that although the state’s rivers are filled with alligators, it’s rare to find one on a beach, specially of that size
Pictured is the Mooring Yacht & Country Club on Vero Beach, close to where the reptile, which will be relocatted, was spotted
‘Once you get their eyes shut, they calm down and tend not to move and squirm so much,’ Morrison told TCPalm. ‘They can’t see, and they don’t want to hurt themselves.’
The trappers then carried the alligator off the beach and put it in a transport box in the back of Morrison’s truck.
Morrison said that Florida rivers are filled with alligators, but it’s rare to find one on a beach, specially of that size, according to TCPalm.
According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, there are about 1.3million alligators in the state, and while females don’t usually grow larger than 10 feet, males can grow larger.
The average size of a male alligator is 11.2 feet. The Florida state record is 14 feet and 3.5 inches from one found in Lake Washington in Brevard County.
The Indian River County Sheriff’s Office says the alligator will be relocated.