Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
British-Born Tres and Janette Ammerman Catch Record-Breaking Alligator In Florida | Strange News | Sky News
0 comments Posted by eightq at 8:27 AM
A British-born family whose hobby is alligator trapping has broken the Florida state record after landing a monster reptile on Halloween.
Florida's longest alligator
The hunters hope to sell the record-breaking alligator to a taxidermist
Yorkshire-born Tres Ammerman caught the 14ft, 3.5in male alligator in Florida's Lake Washington.
The catch broke the previous official state length record set in 1997 by nearly 3in.
Mr Ammerman's wife, Janette, said it is very rare to seen an alligator over 14ft long.
"This really is the longest one that has ever been caught," she told the Orlando Sentinel.
Mr Ammerman was in a boat with two other trappers on October 31 when he spotted the alligator.
The previous record holder was apparently sold for $1,000 a foot... so my husband is going to keep his options open to see what sort of deal we can do with this big boy
Janette Ammerman, the alligator hunter's wife
"I knew he was a giant 'gator when we saw his head," Mr Ammerman said.
The boat crew harpooned the alligator twice and although it attempted to swim away they were able to pull it alongside the boat.
"He was running, jumping, rolling, fighting and trying to bite up on my boat... I was thinking we got Godzilla here," Mr Ammerman said.
His nephew on board the boat, TJ Schause, said the reptile was so large they had to tow it.
In all it took them more than two hours to land the alligator before putting it in a tarpaulin filled with ice in Mr Ammerman's garage.
Arnold Brunell, a Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission biologist who inspected the alligator, confirmed it broke the state record for length, but not weight.
Tres Ammerman and alligator, courtesy of My Fox Orlando.
Registered nurse Tres Ammerman sits atop his alligator
The deadly catch weighed in at a whopping 654 lbs.
"We haven't decided what we are going to do with him yet, probably sell him," Mrs Ammerman said.
"The previous record holder was apparently sold for $1,000 a foot, back in 1997 or '98, so my husband is going to keep his options open to see what sort of deal we can do with this big boy."
With taxidermists willing to pay more than £8,000 for the beast Mr Ammerman, who is a registered nurse, is hoping for a big cheque.
"I feel like I hit the lottery. I do, it's just amazing," he told Fox News.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Berlin: Paul the octopus, who shot to fame during this year's football World Cup in South Africa for his flawless record in predicting game outcomes, has died, his aquarium in Germany said today.
"Management and staff at the Oberhausen Sea Life Centre were devastated to discover that oracle octopus Paul, who achieved global renown during the recent World Cup, had passed away overnight," the aquarium said in a sombre statement.
"Paul amazed the world by correctly predicting the winners of all Germany's World Cup clashes, and then of the final," said Sea Life manager Stefan Porwoll.
"His success made him almost a bigger story than the World Cup itself... We had all naturally grown very fond of him and he will be sorely missed," said Porwoll.
Paul beat the odds during the World Cup by correctly forecasting all eight games he was asked to predict, including Spain's 1-0 win over the Netherlands in the final.
For the prediction, two boxes were lowered into the salty soothsayer's tank, each containing a mussel and a flag of the two opposing teams.
Watched by a myriad of reporters, Paul would head to one box, wrench open the lid and gobble the tasty morsel, with the box he plumped for being deemed the likely winner.
Paul's body is now in cold storage while the aquarium decides "how best to mark his passing."
However, Paul's fans need not despair. The aquarium has already been grooming a successor, to be named Paul like his mentor.
"We may decide to give Paul his own small burial plot within our grounds and erect a modest permanent shrine," said Porwoll.
"While this may seem a curious thing to do for a sea creature, Paul achieved such popularity during his short life that it may be deemed the most appropriate course of action."
