Massive Alligator Caught on Video Is Not a Hoax
This gator, the size of a small car, may be evidence that the population is making a comeback.
Yes, that’s right. American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis) actually can get that big.
“The largest published size record for the American alligator is a 14-foot, 9.25-inch individual that was killed in Alabama in 2014,” says wildlife ecologist and conservation biologist David A. Steen. “The American alligator in the video does not look nearly as big as those record-holders and I have no reason to suspect it is a fake.” (Read: "Caught Giant Alligators Break Records; How Big Do Gators Get?")
Ian Recchio, curator of reptiles at the Los Angeles Zoo, agrees.
“The animal in the video is most certainly an American alligator, and it’s a pretty large one, probably a male,” he says. “I can’t tell if somebody photoshopped the
