Photographer Kymberly Strempack Clark was able to snap a picture of Florida's infamous "Croczilla" just basking in the sun by a pond in the Everglades.
Before coming across the enormous crocodile at Nine Mile Pond on Sunday afternoon, Clark had been looking for him for several months.
Every time Clark visits the Everglades National Park, she searches for Croczilla in the hopes of catching a glimpse of this incredibly huge crocodile, which is thought to be the park's biggest, according to Clark.
She made one last check before leaving the park by making a loop through Nine Mile Pond after numerous unsuccessful attempts over the previous year.
"Croczilla" Basking in Florida Sun
She went on to say how shocked she was to see the infamous Croczilla not far away but right in front of her just on the shore, basking in the sun.
The enormous crocodile nearly didn't look real, Clark continued.
The Florida Wildlife Commission estimated that there are only 2,000 crocodiles in the state, compared to 1.3 million alligators.
The number of wild crocodiles in the US has increased significantly since the 1970s when it was estimated that there were only a few hundred of them.
Despite this, the species is still considered threatened.
Although they rarely grow longer than 14 feet in the wild, American crocodiles can reach a maximum length of 20 feet.
Croczilla is thought to be about 14 feet tall.
Although Croczilla, the largest crocodile in the park, is occasionally spotted at Nine Mile Pond, Everglades National Park staff and tour guides claimed that they are not certain that it was him.
Clark claimed that she is unsure whether or not it was him.
Because of this fact, Clark concluded that Croczilla was the enormous crocodile she photographed.
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Nine Mile Pond
Nine Mile Pond is a well-liked location for canoeing and kayaking, and according to Clark, there were several other cars parked nearby.
However, the crocodile did not appear to be deterred by these.
According to Clark, Croczilla was lazily basking in the sun on the bank and opening its mouth every few minutes to control its body temperature.
Clark reportedly stood staring at the crocodile for more than an hour because she claimed to be mesmerized by its enormous beauty and found it difficult to leave knowing she might never see it again.
She kept a safe distance from the top predator, though.
She emphasized that it is generally advised to keep a safe distance of 20 feet from most crocodiles and alligators because they can leap six feet right from a resting position.
Clark regularly observes incredible wildlife, including alligators, because he lives in South Florida.
But she claimed that finding a crocodile such as this is unusual and rare.
The fact that this is essentially the largest crocodile ever found in the wild in the United States makes the experience of seeing one, even more, unique, Clark says via Newsweek.
The largest living group of reptiles is the crocodilians, which include crocodiles and alligators.
Out of the 23 crocodilian species in the world, only two are native to the US, and South Florida is the only location where both of these species coexist, according to the National Park Service.
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