WALTON COUNTY GATOR

On the first day of hunting season in Walton County a Gulf Breeze man harvested a 12-foot, 3-inch, 360-pound alligator and it may well be among the largest killed in Florida this season. Tim Land, captain of Land and Sea Charters said the gator was caught in Choctawhatchee Bay, by B.J. Etscheid with the help of several other hunters. The gator was caught at about 10:30 p.m. using a snatch hook, pulling it closer to the boat, and then using a weighted hook to better control it. State law prohibits shooting gators until they are subdued. The gator barely fit in their 20-foot boat. Land said it was the second biggest gator they’ve killed in the past eight years.