Garticle #1 - A few essential basics on Gar
A few basics to understand about Gar (And how to get the best out of this forum):
1. There are seven species and two genus: that ranks gar as being pretty low in species diversity. Now with this said there truly is very little reason why one cannot simply ID these fish or at least get a rough idea of genus and species group. Yes some juvenile fish and those of the spotted gar group (Lepisosteus oculatus, L. platyrhincus) can be a bit tricky but there really is no rocket science behind identification of these fish. There is an abundance of information on the specific ID traits of all seven species (plus a few hybrids) both here and elsewhere on the net. There is little excuse to be totally unaware of or not have a slight idea of which species you have or wish to obtain.
2. Identification of these fish is important if you are to attempt keeping one. Gars are not a one size fits all fish and you can not treat one in the same manner you treat and keep another. It has long been assumed and wrongly so that you can just treat all the same. This is really a rather asinine concept. The more that we have been learning about gars the more it is becoming very clear that each species is very different and each species requires a different method of husbandry.
3. A gar is not just a gar because it has the common name gar….. Gar are Lepisosteids. Lepisosteids are characterized by having a elongate bony covered snout and head, Nostrils on the end of the snout, Thick enamel coated ganoid scales, Rounded caudal fin with Vertebrate extending up and along the top edge (Heterocercal tail). These specific traits are only found together in Lepisosteids any other fish called a “gar” that lacks any of the above traits is NOT a gar….Why do gar (Lepisosteid) keepers Panty hamsters get riled when NON gar are the focus of a “gar” conversation? This is simple… THEY ARE NOT GAR and the purpose of a forum such as this that focuses on Lepisosteids in particular is to discuss Lepisosteids not tetras. Lumping these “false gar” with “true gar” is also confusing and inappropriately lumps totally different animals on the basis of what is essentially a useless name…
4. Common names are generally useless when discussing these fish. If you can not ID the species and use the correct scientific vernacular get it from someone you know has it and can tell you correctly. Alligator gar or “fill in blank” gar will not cut it if you wish to get detailed and specific info about a fish in this family. For a very long time the general rule has been to just make something up rather than ID these fish. You will quickly find when asking questions about these fish that those who do know about them do not regularly use common names and will question you as to the ID of your fish quickly if it is not clear what species is being discussed. There is good reason for this and it goes right back to point 2.. Different species require a different approach to husbandry. It is inappropriate and false to lump all these species into one pigeonhole. If someone does do this their advice or comments are best taken with a grain of salt and you would be wise to re-check the information yourself.
Really myself and some others enjoy talking about and disseminating information about these fish and will do so enthusiastically if asked right with details that can allow a detailed anwser. With just a few moments on your part to avoid miscommunication and to make sure that communication is clear we can all learn quite a lot.. Being lazy about even looking at available resources will quickly not be looked at very positively. Gars are a specialized group of fish and there is a small but dedicated core that specialize in them. We will not bother to answer the same question 900 times when we just did it yesterday.
Please do a small amount of research by looking over past topics and search the net a bit before asking what are essentially simple questions. (I.E What do they eat?, How big do they get?, what gar is this? can I keep one in a 55 gallon? )
Many of the serious keepers of Gar here are actually very busy people with a ton of work to do other than answer questions over and over again. (We are trying to figure out those things that need answers about these fish most of the time)
I really have no issue myself answering any question about these fish (No matter how stupid I think it is) when it is presented properly and has details that allow a response. I really do not think it is a difficult or unreasonable request to ask of you, the poster of questions, to add detail and follow a simple protocol so that we can all get something out of this forum. We are not all here just to chat and socialize we all do not care to chat or to socialize. we are here for the specific fish and hope to gain info as much as dispense it out of this medium..
OK..Poly's panty hamster is now worn out....
A few basics to understand about Gar (And how to get the best out of this forum):
1. There are seven species and two genus: that ranks gar as being pretty low in species diversity. Now with this said there truly is very little reason why one cannot simply ID these fish or at least get a rough idea of genus and species group. Yes some juvenile fish and those of the spotted gar group (Lepisosteus oculatus, L. platyrhincus) can be a bit tricky but there really is no rocket science behind identification of these fish. There is an abundance of information on the specific ID traits of all seven species (plus a few hybrids) both here and elsewhere on the net. There is little excuse to be totally unaware of or not have a slight idea of which species you have or wish to obtain.
2. Identification of these fish is important if you are to attempt keeping one. Gars are not a one size fits all fish and you can not treat one in the same manner you treat and keep another. It has long been assumed and wrongly so that you can just treat all the same. This is really a rather asinine concept. The more that we have been learning about gars the more it is becoming very clear that each species is very different and each species requires a different method of husbandry.
3. A gar is not just a gar because it has the common name gar….. Gar are Lepisosteids. Lepisosteids are characterized by having a elongate bony covered snout and head, Nostrils on the end of the snout, Thick enamel coated ganoid scales, Rounded caudal fin with Vertebrate extending up and along the top edge (Heterocercal tail). These specific traits are only found together in Lepisosteids any other fish called a “gar” that lacks any of the above traits is NOT a gar….Why do gar (Lepisosteid) keepers Panty hamsters get riled when NON gar are the focus of a “gar” conversation? This is simple… THEY ARE NOT GAR and the purpose of a forum such as this that focuses on Lepisosteids in particular is to discuss Lepisosteids not tetras. Lumping these “false gar” with “true gar” is also confusing and inappropriately lumps totally different animals on the basis of what is essentially a useless name…
4. Common names are generally useless when discussing these fish. If you can not ID the species and use the correct scientific vernacular get it from someone you know has it and can tell you correctly. Alligator gar or “fill in blank” gar will not cut it if you wish to get detailed and specific info about a fish in this family. For a very long time the general rule has been to just make something up rather than ID these fish. You will quickly find when asking questions about these fish that those who do know about them do not regularly use common names and will question you as to the ID of your fish quickly if it is not clear what species is being discussed. There is good reason for this and it goes right back to point 2.. Different species require a different approach to husbandry. It is inappropriate and false to lump all these species into one pigeonhole. If someone does do this their advice or comments are best taken with a grain of salt and you would be wise to re-check the information yourself.
Really myself and some others enjoy talking about and disseminating information about these fish and will do so enthusiastically if asked right with details that can allow a detailed anwser. With just a few moments on your part to avoid miscommunication and to make sure that communication is clear we can all learn quite a lot.. Being lazy about even looking at available resources will quickly not be looked at very positively. Gars are a specialized group of fish and there is a small but dedicated core that specialize in them. We will not bother to answer the same question 900 times when we just did it yesterday.
Please do a small amount of research by looking over past topics and search the net a bit before asking what are essentially simple questions. (I.E What do they eat?, How big do they get?, what gar is this? can I keep one in a 55 gallon? )
Many of the serious keepers of Gar here are actually very busy people with a ton of work to do other than answer questions over and over again. (We are trying to figure out those things that need answers about these fish most of the time)
I really have no issue myself answering any question about these fish (No matter how stupid I think it is) when it is presented properly and has details that allow a response. I really do not think it is a difficult or unreasonable request to ask of you, the poster of questions, to add detail and follow a simple protocol so that we can all get something out of this forum. We are not all here just to chat and socialize we all do not care to chat or to socialize. we are here for the specific fish and hope to gain info as much as dispense it out of this medium..
OK..Poly's panty hamster is now worn out....