Like the fossilized skeletons of its ancestors displayed in the Smithsonian, a 12-foot alligator can be scary even when it’s dead—something that Shooting Illustrated's Adam Heggenstaller learned in person during a gator hunt in Florida.
Finding an alligator prowling around the area is something that residents in the southeastern part of the country are relatively accustomed to dealing with. But finding monster—not once, but twice—that looks like it walked right out of a Discovery Channel special? That's a little less common.
At present, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission (FWC) estimates there are about 1.3 million resident wild alligators, up sharply from a low in the early 1960s that prompted the closure of legal hunting. The alligator population has been on the rebound since, and hunting seasons were reinstated in the 1980s.
If you're looking for a unique adventure in which you have the opportunity to take an apex predator with a bow, look no further than the American alligator. Here's a guide to get you started.