Mississippi's alligator hunting season kicked off just three days ago and records are already being shattered left and right.
For roughly one hour, a 723.5-pound gator caught in Madison on Sunday held the state's record for heaviest alligator until a group of hunters from Claiborne County shot a 727-pound monster. The previous record holder weighed 697.5 pounds.
At 13 feet, 4.5 inches, the massive gator was two inches shy of the current length holder, a 13-foot 6.5-inch alligator caught in 2008, according to the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks.
"It took about four and a half hours to actually catch him from the first time we saw him," Mississippi hunter Dustin Bockman told MSNNewsNow.
Bockman, a UPS driver, was helped by his brother and a friend.
After shooting the alligator, Bockman says it took the crew another four hours to try and load the alligator into the boat. They finally gave up and called for help.
On the night of Aug. 30, another hunting party caught the state's largest female alligator ever. It set the state's current length and weight record, measuring 10 feet long and weighing 295.3 pounds.
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