THE dinosaurs may have been wiped out 65 million years ago but some of their closest living relatives are still just as terrifying.
That includes the 15 foot long alligator which became the largest of its kind to ever legally be killed in Alabama in 2014.
The beast weighed in at 1,011.5 pounds, according to Al.com, and was so big that it broke the machine used to hoist it.
It isn't even the biggest of its kind on record, however, although a full rundown of the world's largest and most terrifying alligators – with the help of A-Z Animals – can be found below.
The Mike Cottingham Alligator
Size: 13 feet 3 inches
Weight: 1,380 pounds
Year: 2012
Where: Arkansas
Typically, alligators grow to between 400lbs – 800lbs and over eight feet but some of the largest on record completely dwarf those measurements.
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And none more so than the one which Mike Cottingham captured in Arkansas, 2012, which came in at a gigantic length of 13 feet 3 inches and weighed 1,380 pounds.
The Skull
Size: 13 feet 10 inches
Weight: 1,043 pounds
Year: 2020
Where: Florida
This alligator skull was so big that experts didn't need to see the rest of the creature's body to determine it's terrifying size.
Found in Florida three years ago, a single alligator skull of 29.5 inches in length was enough for investigators to put it in the biggest top five on record of all time.
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The Mandy Stokes Alligator
Size: 15 feet 9 inches
Weight: 1,011.5 pounds
Year: 2014
Where: Alabama
This whopper might not be the largest on record but it remains the largest alligator to ever legally be killed since its death in 2014.
It took a team of five people more than five hours to kill the beast, according to CS Monitor, after attempts to shoot it made it super mad.
The Apalachicola Giant
Size: 13 feet
Weight: 1,008 pounds
Year: 2020
Where: Florida
A man named Corey Capps finally ended his nightmare of being haunted by a 13 foot alligator when he harpooned the giant back in 2020.
But the 1,000 pounds-plus giant took the men almost four hours to move just 100 feet, with it coming in as the fourth largest on record.
The Lane Stephens Alligator
Size: 14 feet
Weight: Around 1,000 pounds
Year: 2012
Where: Florida
Another super-gator to weigh 1,000 pounds is the one caught by local trapper Lane Stephens in 2012, which took him three hours to kill.
After being told he would be dealing with a big creature, Stephens wasn't quit prepared for just how big when it measured a shocking 14 feet.
Bix Tex
Size: 13 feet 8.5 inches
Weight: 900 pounds
Year: 1996
Where: Texas
Known as Bix Tex, this gator became the biggest one to be caught alive when he was brought inat 800 pounds.
After he stopped fearing humans, the decision was made to put him in solitary confinement, although he still became a popular attraction at the Gator Country facility.
The Blake Godwin and Lee Lightsey Alligator
Size: 15 feet
Weight: 800 pounds
Year: 2016
Where: Florida
Yet another titan which was captured in Florida, this alligator was known as a local cattle slaughterer and required a tractor to pull it out of its pond.
Blake Goodwin, who measured the beast, was astounded that "something that big exists in the wild" and gave its meat to charity.
The Tom Grant Alligator
Size: 13 feet 1.5 inches
Weight: 697.5 pounds
Year: 2012
Where: Mississippi
Famous alligator explorer Tom Grant maned to wrestler this 13 feet animal to shore with the help of his team in 2012 – but not after it broke the boat's winch.
It's belly girth came in at 65 inches in diameter, shocking experts who weren't used to finding one's that big in the Mississippi Delta.
The Robert Ammerman Alligator
Size: 14 feet 3.5 inches
Weight: 654 pounds
Year: 2017
Where: Florida
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The final alligator giant on this list, but yet another on Florida's books, is the one landed by noted alligator hunter Robert Ammerman in 2017.
After failing to fit it in his boat, Ammerman was forced to tow it – but only after the angry gator had been towing him for 45 minutes.
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