Georgia Department of Natural Resources, on last week, confirmed the discovery of a gigantic alligator weighing 700 pounds. The 13-feet beast was discovered in an irrigation ditch near Lake Blackshear and experts were quite surprised to see such a giant creature.
After the discovery, Melissa Cummings, a spokeswoman for the Georgia DNR told First Coast News that it is the alligator's life without by isolating itself from humans which helped this creature to gain such a massive weight. Upon discovery, researchers spotted old gunshots on its body, and it was apparently in poor health status.
"It's a testament to Georgia's alligator-management program that alligators can grow to this size. The only way these animals get this large is by avoiding humans," revealed Melissa.
The images of the alligator soon went viral on online spaces, and after noticing its large size, many skeptics cast the doubt that this photo might be a manipulated hoax. However, Brent Howze, the wildlife biologist who was seen crouching behind the alligator in the photo revealed that the picture is authentic.
While interacting with Cordel Dispatch, Howze assured that the image is not fake, and made it clear that the alligator was located after a local Sumter County resident spotted it in the ditch on Monday morning.
"Apparently a lot of people think it's fake, but I can assure you that it is not. I'm the one in the picture, and you can probably tell that I didn't get too close to it. It took a while to get it out of that ditch. It was bigger than we originally anticipated, and we had to use heavy equipment to move it," said Brent Howze.
Brent Howze also added that humans should not fear alligators, as it no way poses threats to human beings. He also added that people can swim and play in the water at Lake Blackshear without fearing alligators.
