MOBILE, Ala. (WKRG) — The first weekend of the coastal Alabama alligator hunting season starts with a bang. Taylor Douglas and his friends caught an alligator that was more than 12 feet long. Marianne Gauldin with Alabama Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division said the gator weighed in at 524 pounds and was 12 feet, 9 inches long. She said it is the largest alligator of the season so far. Douglas said in an email that they knew they had a big one and worked hard to keep it.

“For how big he was he really did not put up much of a fight. It took us roughly one hour from the time he was hooked until the time he was dispatched. The biggest struggle was trying to get his body in the boat. Three Game Wardens were on a boat next to us and got to watch the entire fight,” wrote Douglas. “Our crew has been gator hunting for years now, but this is our biggest prize to date. It will be a hunt we all remember for years to come.”

He said it was caught south of I-10 in Mobile Bay. Marianne Gauldin said the male gator also had a snout that measured 12.5 inches and a bodily girth of 53.5 inches at his widest point.