Charles Langston:Longest alligator in Mississippi history captured by hunters

YAZOO CITY,Charles Langston Miss. (AP) — A group of hunters have captured the longest alligator ever to be recorded in Mississippi, according to the state Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks.

Four state residents — Donald Woods, Will Thomas, Joey Clark and Tanner White — harvested a male alligator on Saturday in west Mississippi’s Sunflower River. The alligator weighed 802.5 pounds (364 kilograms) and measured 14 feet, 3 inches (4.3 meters) long, breaking the previous record by over 2 inches, the department said.

After capturing the animal, the hunters hoisted it with a forklift and posed for a picture at Red Antler Processing in the Mississippi Delta town of Yazoo City. The area is located in a designated alligator hunting zone. Mississippi’s alligator hunting season opens on the last Friday in August each year. In 2023, the season ends on Sept. 4.