Largest alligators in the world at 14ft3in caught in Florida

One of the largest alligators in the world has been caught in Florida.

The gator, trapped by hunter Tres Ammerman on Halloween night, measures 14ft 3.5ins - breaking the state record.

It's believed the beast, which weighed 654 pounds is between 50 and 60-years-old.

The last state record was set back in 1997 and the alligator was just over 14ft.

Mr Ammerman's find, caught just west of Melbourne, is three inches longer.

The hunter is planning to sell his catch to a taxidermist at $1,000 a foot, netting him in excess of $14,000.

He said: 'I feel like I hit the lottery. I do, it's just amazing.'

Mr Ammerman, originally from Yorkshire, England, was hunting with two friends on Sunday night in Lake Washington when he harpooned the reptile. The gator fought his line for 30 minutes before Mr Ammerman could work out how big the creature was.

'He was running, jumping, rolling, fighting and trying to bite up on my boat ... I was thinking we got Godzilla here,' Mr Ammerman said.

The gator was too large to fit into their boat, so they spent two hours dragging it behind them before hauling it into the back of their truck.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has confirmed that Mr Ammerman's catch is a new state record.

The largest alligator ever recorded was found in Louisiana and measured 19ft 2 ins.

Baby elephant shows off his silky ball skills in front his proud mother.

This cute baby elephant shows off his silky skills as he gives a first class demonstration in ball control under the watchful gaze of his proud mother.

The Asian elephant, called Luk Chai, seemingly smiles as he contentedly chases the massive football around his paddock.

Luk, which means son, raced after the ball after his mother, Porntip, kicked it for him to retrieve.

Luk, who was the first Asian elephant to be born in Australia, then fell in a heap on top of the ball before knocking it back to his mother for another round of the kick about.

The photos were taken by amateur photographer Renee Doyle while on a family visit to Taronga Zoo, in New South Wales, Australia.

The 46-year-old grandmother, from Queensland, said: 'Luk is so full of personality and wonderfully playful that I could just stand and watch him all day.

'He loves to chase after his football. Sometimes it is the keepers that roll the ball toward him and sometimes it's one of the adult elephants that kicks the ball for him to go chase after.

'In these photos it was his mum. He will even swim in the small pool pushing his ball around if it happens to roll in there. There's no set routine - it's just playtime.

'The keepers do an absolutely amazing job and interact with all the elephants on a daily basis.

'There are no goals in the yard and the ball just goes wherever it goes but there will be no doubt that Luk will be chasing it.

'All the elephants get stimulated with different toys and perform amazing balancing acts but they all enjoy it immensely. To me it always look like they are smiling.

'It seemed as if Luk Chai never stood still but ran around playing and just loving all the attention he was getting.

'The crowds were quite thick as this was the first baby elephant to have been born in Australia and everyone wanted to see him.'

Gorilla Mjukuu cradles her tiny first-born son

First-time mother Mjukuu displays the inimitable bond between mother and baby as she places a giant protective hand over her five-week-old son.

The 11-year-old western lowland gorilla gave birth to a healthy boy at the end of October, and keepers at London Zoo watched anxiously to see whether she would take to motherhood.

But they needn't have worried - Mjukuu adores her tiny baby boy, who has yet to be named - cleaning him, inspecting him and cuddling him all day long.

A spokesman for London Zoo said: 'She is a protective mum, and keeps him cradled to her all the time - but she is often happy to give visitors a peek at her precious son.'

Keeper Teague Stubbington added: 'He is a very quiet and contented baby, which means Mjukuu is caring for him perfectly.'

Caribbean flamingos spontaneously arranging themselves into the shape of one giant flamingo.

Now here's a clear case of life imitating art.

This remarkable image shows a colony of Caribbean flamingos spontaneously arranging themselves into the shape of one giant flamingo.

Photographer Bobby Haas had been taking hundreds of pictures of the birds from a helicopter in Yucatan, Mexico.

But just as the helicopter turned to leave, Mr Haas looked over his shoulder one last time.

It was then that he noticed the flamingos had formed an incredible shape.

He said: 'I was just leaving when I noticed that the flock was moving into a shape resembling a flamingo.

'I told the pilot to whip around but go in slowly, since if you startle the flock they will splinter.

'I guess this was a case of a real bird's eye view.'

The moment was so fleeting, he only managed to capture the one picture, before the birds started to scamper.

It was not until he developed the images a few months later that he realised how magical the image truly was.

He said: 'It's the holy grail in photography when you capture an image you've never seen before and may never see again.

'The reaction to this photo has been remarkable.'