GAR
LONGNOSE GAR
(Lepisosteus osseus)
Common Names - gar, garfish
Description - They are olive-brown or deep green along the
back and upper sides, with silver-white bellies. There are a few
irregular, large dark spots on the body. The young display scattered
spots over both sides, the upper and lower jaws and on their ventral
fins. The longnose is generally distinguished from other gars by its
longer, more slender body, and especially by its longer, narrower
snout. The snout is twice the length of the rest of the head.
Subspecies - There are no recognized subspecies.
Range - They are one of the most widespread and numerous
of the gar species in Florida. They generally are found north of and
in Lake Okeechobee.
Habitat - They inhabit sluggish, sometimes poorly
oxygenated water, backwaters and oxbows of medium-to-large rivers and
lakes. Longnose gars as well as other gar species are able to
tolerate poor water quality by breathing air through its air bladder.
They usually are found near vegetation and occasionally in brackish
waters.
Spawning Habits - Spawning occurs between December and
March in Florida. Adhesive eggs are scattered in shallow water over
vegetation or other structure and hatch between six and eight days
later. The larvae attaches themselves to the substrate shortly after
hatching by means of a disk-like organ on the tip of the snout while
the fish continues to develop. The attachment organ subsequently is
lost as the fish develops into an adult.
Feeding Habits - Young fish mainly feed on zooplankton
while larger ones feed on small fishes, frogs and crustaceans. They
feed by stalking their prey or lying in wait for it to come within
striking distance.
Age and Growth - Females grow faster, bigger, and live
longer than males and can attain lengths in excess of five feet.
Sporting Qualities - Gars are sporty fighters; however,
they are not fished for to a great extent. They can be taken with
minnows and artificial lures or during daylight by spearing (although
not by speargun) and snagging them with treble hooks. They are
popular with bow-fishermen and anglers using frayed nylon cord as a
lure snag, which entangles the gars teeth.
Eating Quality - Although the flesh of longnose gars are
edible, it is not popular. However, the Seminole Indians reportedly
prefer gars over other fish. They roast them whole in the coals of
open fires. The roe is poisonous to humans, animals and birds.
World Record - 50.31 pounds, caught in Trinity River,
Texas, in 1954.
State Record - 41.00 pounds,
caught in Lake Panasoffkee, Sumter County, in 1985. (Please check
link for updates)
FLORIDA GAR
(Lepisosteus platyrhincus)
Common Names - gar, garfish, spotted gar
Description - They have irregular round, black spots on
the top of the head and over the entire body and on all the fins.
Other gars, except for spotted gars, have spots on the fins and
usually on the posterior part of the body. They can be distinguished
from other gars, such as spotted gars, by the distance from the front
of the eye to the back of the gill cover. In Florida gars, the
distance is less than two-thirds the length of the snout. In spotted
gars, the distance is more than two-thirds the length of the snout.
Other characteristics of Florida gars include a shorter, broader
snout with a single row of irregularly spaced sharp teeth on both
upper and lower jaws and no bony scales on the throat. The coloration
is olive-brown along the back and upper sides with a white-to-yellow
belly. The young sometimes have dark stripes along back and sides.
Subspecies - There are no recognized subspecies.
Range - They are found in the Ochlockonee River and waters
east and south in peninsular Florida.
Habitat - They inhabit medium-to-large lowland streams,
canals and lakes with mud or sand bottoms near underwater vegetation.
Like all gars, they use an air bladder to breathe air to survive in
poorly oxygenated water.
Spawning Habits - Spawning occurs in late winter and early
spring. Groups of fish of both sexes congregate in shallow weedy
waters where the females discharge their adhesive eggs among the
submerged aquatic plants. The newly hatched young possess an adhesive
organ on the end of their snout and stay attached to vegetation until
they are about 3/4-inch long.
Feeding Habits - Young fish feed on zooplankton, insect
larvae and small fish. Adults primarily feed on fish, shrimp and
crayfish.
Age and Growth - Florida gars grow rapidly and can reach a
length of 30 inches.
Sporting Qualities - See longnose gar.
Eating Quality - Although edible, they are unpopular as
food. The roe is highly toxic to humans, animals and birds.
World Record - 21.19 pounds, caught in Boca Raton,
Florida, in 1981.
State Record - 7.00 pounds,
caught in Ocklawaha River, Putnam County, in 1988. (Please check link
for updates)
SPOTTED GAR
(Lepisosteus oculatus)
Common Names - gar, garfish, Florida gar
Description - Spotted gars are almost identical to Florida
gars. These species are the only two gars that have dark spots on the
top of the head as well as over the entire body and on all the fins.
They can be distinguished by the distance between the front of the
eye and the rear edge of the gill cover. If the distance is more than
two-thirds the length of the snout, it is a spotted gar. If the
distance is less than two-thirds the length of the snout, it is a
Florida gar. Spotted gars have a single row of teeth in each jaw and
has a much broader snout than that of the longnose gar. Spotted gar also
have bony scales on their throat. The
coloration generally is darker than that of Florida gars, some fish
being almost black, depending on the color of the water.
Subspecies - There are no recognized subspecies. However,
they may hybridize with Florida gars.
Range - They occur west of the Ochlockonee River in the
panhandle of Florida. East of the Apalachicola drainage and in the
remainder of the state they are replaced by its closest relative, the
Florida gar.
Habitat - They prefer quiet, clear pools and backwaters of
lowland creeks; small-to-large rivers, swamps, sloughs and ditches
with an abundance of vegetation or debris. Spotted gars occasionally
enter salt water. They also use an air bladder to breathe air in
oxygen depleted water.
Spawning Habits - Spawning occurs in the spring in heavily
vegetated sloughs. The adhesive eggs are dispersed in the water,
attach to aquatic vegetation and hatch within six-to-eight days.
Larvae adhere to vegetation after hatching by means of a disk-like
organ on the tip of the snout while the fish develops. The organ
subsequently is lost as the fish develops into an adult.
Feeding Habits - Young fish feed on zooplankton, small
insect larvae and tiny fish larvae. Adult fish primarily feed on fish
and crustaceans.
Age and Growth - Growth is very rapid during the first
year. They reach a maximum length of up to four feet.
Sporting Qualities - They can be caught on a variety of
artificial lures; however, dead minnows on a line fished just below
the surface are quite effective. Wire leaders prevent the sharp teeth
from cutting the line. Also refer to sporting qualities under
longnose gar.
Eating Quality - Refer to Florida gar.
World Record - 8.75 pounds, caught in the Tennessee River,
Alabama, in 1987.
State Record - None exists.
(Please check link for updates)
ALLIGATOR GAR
(Atractosteus spatula)
Common Names - gar, garfish
Description - They are one of the most distinctive
freshwater fish species. Alligator gars are the largest of all gar
species with a head that looks very much like an alligator's. They
can be distinguished from all other gars species by the two rows of
teeth in the upper jaw, their short-broader snout, and their size
when fully grown. The body is long, slender, and olive or greenish
brown (sometimes black) along the back and upper sides with white to
yellow bellies. The sides are mottled toward the head with large
black spots toward the rear and on the rear fins. The young have a
light stripe along their back from tip of snout to upper base of
caudal fin.
Subspecies - There are no recognized subspecies.
Range - Found in the Escambia, Yellow and Choctawhatchee
rivers in northwest Florida. They have also been found in the
Econfina/Bear Creek area of Bay County.
Habitat - They inhabit sluggish pools and backwaters of
large rivers, bayous and lakes. They rarely are found in brackish or
salt water.
Spawning Habits - Although complete life history
information is lacking, it is believed that alligator gars spawn in
early May, probably in a manner similar to other gars.
Feeding Habits - They mainly feed on fish but are known to
eat ducks and other water birds.
Age and Growth - They are one of the monsters of fresh
waters. They can reach lengths of up to 10 feet and weights of more
than 200 pounds.
Sporting Qualities - Because of their huge size and great
strength, alligator gars are popular with anglers. They are not a
fish that is caught easily because its sharp teeth will cut most
lines in an instant. They are sought often by bow-fishermen.
Eating Quality - They are edible, but are not highly rated
by most people. As with other gars, the roe is toxic.
World Record - 279.00 pounds, caught in the Rio Grande
River, Texas, in 1951.
State Record - 123.00 pounds,
caught in the Choctowhatchee River, Walton County, in 1995. (Please
check link for updates)
.
NOTE: Alligator gar may only be taken by a special research permit,
due to their limited numbers and the age at which they reproduce.
For more info on gar fishing check out
the Gar Anglers' Sporting Society page at
http://www.garfishing.com/
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Florida
Gar
