14-foot gator pulled from Florida lake

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla., Aug. 22 (UPI) -- A Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission trapper said a 14-foot alligator he caught in Lake Talquin was the fourth to exceed 11 feet in recent months.

Lane Stephens, a contracted alligator trapper with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, said the most recent mammoth gator he pulled from Lake Talquin was a 14-foot behemoth that nearly matched the state record of 14 feet, 3 1/2 inches, The Tallahassee Democrat reported Wednesday.

"I didn't know it was as large as it was," Stephens said. "I knew it was an extremely large gator because the complainant had told me it was an extremely large alligator [that had come onto her property]. I didn't know exactly how big until we got him back to the boat landing and started trying to load him in my truck."

"Nobody is going to load a gator that size into their boat."