An enormous alligator was filmed from above swimming in the water after the woman went missing.
An enormous alligator was filmed from above swimming in the water after the woman went missing.
An arm has been found inside the body of an alligator which is believed to have dragged a woman to her death this morning while she was out walking her dogs.
Park rangers eventually captured the enormous alligator at Silver Lakes Rotary Park in Davie, Florida, on Friday afternoon after spending hours searching for it in the large pond, the Daily Mail reported.
When they cut it open, they discovered a human arm. They were called to the scene at 9.45am amid reports that Shizuka Matsuki, 46, had been dragged in to the water.
Local TV showed the animal being caught.
She was out walking her dogs, one of which was found by the side of the water with a large, fresh wound on its coat when authorities arrived.
Before divers could go into the water to look for the woman - who remains missing - they had to capture the beastly reptile which was filmed swimming ominously through the dark water not long after the alarm was raised.
Locals say the reptiles are known to frequent the water and that they know not to let their dogs off the leash there because of it.
The alarm was raised at 9.45am when a man called 911 claiming to have seen the woman be taken into the water.
He told police that when he got to the water's edge, Matsuki had vanished and her dogs were standing with their leashes on. One had a fresh wound, he said.
"Her dogs won't leave the pond. One of her dogs got bit by the gator," Davie Police Maj. Dale Engle told The Sun Sentinel as he searched for the woman afterwards.
Alligators are known to become more active in the spring and early summer as temperatures heat up.
The nature park is popular among dog walkers and has two large bodies of water.
A witness said trappers had spotted a 12-foot (3.5m) alligator in the pond in Silver Lakes Rotary Nature Park.
Another woman told Local 10 that her poodle vanished near the water at Christmas and that she suspected it had been eaten.
Local resident Amy Brehm told DailyMail.com that she was at the park on Wednesday night and saw the alligator in the water.
"I was there with a friend, I go almost every day to watch the sun set.
"While we were sitting in the gazebo an alligator swims by just off the shore. The alligator just did laps around the lake. The park ranger had just left not even five minutes before I saw it.
Police are still searching for the woman who was seen being pulled into the water at Silver Lakes Rotary Nature Park in Davie, Florida. Photo / Supplied
"I waited around until nightfall for him to come back and tell him. I waited over an hour and he never showed so I left.
"The park is a known park for animals to swim in. There is even a rope swing that people jump off to swim in," she said.
Alligators are opportunistic feeders that will eat what is readily available and easily overpowered. Feeding wild alligators is illegal because they could lose their fear of humans.Fatal attacks on humans remain rare, however.
According to the wildlife commission, the likelihood of a Florida resident being seriously injured during an unprovoked alligator incident in Florida is roughly only 1 in 3.2 million.
From 1948 to 2017, the commission has documented 401 people bitten by alligators, including 24 fatalities. The most recent death occurred in 2016, when a 2-year-old boy playing near the water's edge at a Walt Disney World resort was killed.
The park where Matsuki disappeared Friday is near the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, a major Miami-area tourist and entertainment attraction.
Authorities closed the park Friday, but passers-by said they were not surprised to hear about an alligator lurking in the water.
"Any body of water in Florida, you've got to know at some point or another there's an alligator," said Heather Porrata, who lives nearby.
Sharon Estupinan said a park ranger warned her to walk her dogs farther away from the water's edge after she saw a 10-foot (3m) gator in the pond three days ago.
"I was afraid," she said. "Every time I walked the dogs during the day, I was like, 'Oh, my God, I've gotta keep away from there. I have to call my dogs,' so they wouldn't get close to the water or any of the trees near there because he could be hiding. Although, he's really big. I don't think he could really hide."
Alligators and humans frequently cross paths in Florida, as people increasingly seek waterfront homes and recreation.
The large reptiles can be found in fresh and brackish bodies of water — including lakes, rivers, canals and golf course ponds — and there is roughly 6.7 million acres of suitable habitat statewide.
They are particularly active during their mating season in May and June.
