What a catch! Terrifying moment alligator rushes out of water to snatch seven-year-old boy's fish and his pole

 This is the terrifying moment an alligator rushed out of the water to grab a young boy's fish before making off with his fishing pole as the stunned child's father looks on.  

Sean McMahon was filming his 7-year-old son Dawson as the boy went fishing in the family's backyard on the Palm Coast in Florida when the young boy began reeling in his catch.

'It's alright, buddy. Keep going,' his dad said in the video, which was uploaded to  Facebook.

'He's a fighter,' Dawson says as he continues to fight with the fish before dragging it onto land.  

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Sean McMahon was filming his 7-year-old son Dawson (pictured) as the boy went fishing in the family's Palm Coast backyard when the young boy began reeling in his catch

'He's a fighter,' Dawson says as he continues to fight with the fish before dragging it onto land

Within seconds, a massive alligator rushes out of the water and snatches the boy's catch in his mouth, causing Dawson to jump back in alarm. 

In his haste to leave, the alligator even took the boy's fishing pole along with him as he turned around and receded back into the murky water.    'Dawson caught a bass tonight and out of nowhere an alligator came up, ate the bass and ripped his pole into the water!' McMahon wrote. 

Thankfully, neither Dawson nor the alligator were injured during the wild scene. 

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'Dawson caught a bass tonight and out of nowhere an alligator came up, ate the bass and ripped his pole into the water!' McMahon wrote on Facebook

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In his haste to leave, the alligator even took the boy's fishing pole along with him as he turned around and receded back into the murky water

Meanwhile, social media reactions ran the gamut from relief for the boy's safety to awe over the wild encounter. 

'Dad didn't seem too surprised, zoomed in pretty quick too. Luckily his kid wasn't dragged in,' wrote Brenda Leech. 

'One of a mothers worst nightmares,' commented Janina Elgogo.

'...and this is why you teach them to stay away from the waters edge. Good boy for dropping that pole and running. That was a smaller gator but still big enough' another person wrote. 

'Poor kid, so proud of his catch, then to lose it to an alligator. Glad he is safe,' one person commented

'Dad didn't seem too surprised.... luckily his kid wasn't dragged in,' another person wrote

'One of a mothers worst nightmares,' commented Janina Elgogo

'Good boy for dropping that pole and running. That was a smaller gator but still big enough,' Kerrie Gernentz Frederick wrote

'I'm guessing dad is not from Florida and doesn't know about gators ..lakes… the distance you should keep near water in Florida..ect….. thank God this boy is alive,' a third posted. 

'Poor kid. So proud of his catch, then (to) lose it to a gator. Glad he is safe.' Louise Crider commented. 

Roughly 1.25 million alligators live in the state of Florida, alongside 1,000 American crocodiles, not including hatchlings, according to Defenders.org.

There have been been 23 fatalities caused by alligators between 1948 and 2016 in the Sunshine State, Enjuris reports.