The victim of an alligator attack could have his hand sewn back on after police retrieved it from the animal's stomach.
Timothy Delano, 18, was attacked by the beast while swimming with two friends in a canal at Naples, Florida, on Monday evening.
He was recovering in hospital on Tuesday after being airlifted there and doctors are hopeful that they may be able reattach his hand.
His attacker was tracked down, killed and his stomach was "harvested", said Gabriella Ferraro, a spokesman for Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
She said of the mission to retrieve Delano's hand: "Our goal is always to make a person whole again."
However, she warned that people should recognise that any fresh water body in Florida could have alligators.
She said those animals are most active at dawn and dusk.- Daily Mail