Mara-Christian said Friday that she is an experienced hunter, but this was her first gator. The 48-year-old former bank marketing officer, was hunting Wednesday with her husband, who is a firefighter and a part-time hunting guide.

It took about two hours to secure the gator before they could shoot it. The .22-caliber gun they used wasn’t powerful enough to put the animal down, so Mara-Christian used a knife to sever the alligator’s spinal cord.