Black Spots On Gator Gar -Help-

[Gar keeper]

It's still illegal, whether you care or not


The first thing I would say is that you might want to replace the heater. Even in California, the water can get too cold for tropical fish without proper heating. 65 degrees is too cold for a Gator Gar. Secondly, Sea Salt is not the same thing as aquarium salt; it is used to make brackish conditions. Aquarium salt is used to help in freshwater tanks. How are the spots now? Do they have any growth on them? The last thing is how is being next to a window affecting the tank? is there any algae in it? How are the tank conditions? Hope it's nothing too serious.

Thanks for the reply. I took the heater from my other tank and put it in his tank to help bring up the temp. The algae is not an issue as the window he is by has blinds on it that are always closed.
As for the spots... everyone here said it doesn't seem to be anything to worry about, and one guy even said that 2 of his gar have the same thing.
So I guess the only thing to do from here is to keep an eye on them and see what happens. I still swear I think I see some "fuzz" on one of them, but I might be trippin... I'll keep an eye on it and see what happens. Hopefully the warmer water will help a little. He's a tough mofo

 

[badisbadis101]

I am fairly certain Alligator gars can easily take 65F water, and lower. They are US natives, and i know of several places that get far below this water temperature in which there are thriving populations of alligator gars. I would think the diet would be a much more significant concern than the temperature, as long as it does not change too fast.

However, i have never kept gars, and i am basing this solely on my observations of wild gars.

 

[xander]

I am fairly certain Alligator gars can easily take 65F water, and lower. They are US natives, and i know of several places that get far below this water temperature in which there are thriving populations of alligator gars. I would think the diet would be a much more significant concern than the temperature, as long as it does not change too fast.

However, i have never kept gars, and i am basing this solely on my observations of wild gars.

hmm, you observe wild gars? how did you come up with the conclusion that they are thriving, and not merely surviving in these cold waters?

 

[Polypterus]

hmm, you observe wild gars? how did you come up with the conclusion that they are thriving, and not merely surviving in these cold waters?

They are temperate fish not Tropical... The above information is quite correct Temp is not as important as diet in captivity. Naturally however one should avoid extremes on either end and never change things abruptly. I personally find Spatula do better in the lower 70's but dips down to the lower 60's or ebbs up to the 90's for small periods of time will not hardly bother them. Sustaining them above or below the optimal temp of 70 to 75 consistantly, I would not advise. I have always used a winter cool down period for my gars and it definitly has strong husbandry value to do so.

 

[E_americanus]

hmm, you observe wild gars? how did you come up with the conclusion that they are thriving, and not merely surviving in these cold waters?

i would leave that one alone if i were you...the observation is generally correct in this case. if you were to find gator gars somewhere in large numbers...and if it seemed cooler, chances are the habitat was at least decent.

i will continue in the other thread about food sometime soon, but it has seemed to be just too much of a headache as of late (and i have other things to do).

in short, for this thread, i would not worry about the spots, but keep track of them. the diet is questionable at best. feeding decent foods (shrimp, pellets, frozen fish) as a staple is what a responsible fish keeper would do, maybe feeders as a treat from time to time (i've done that too). terrestrial proteins and all the "logic" toward exposure to disease and poor conditions making the fish tougher are some of the most ridiculous and nonsensical justifications i have heard in a while.

one does not inoculate an individual with ebola or HIV or cancer to see if they can stand up to it and make them tougher...at least if they can help it. and this is not like antivenin leading to resistance either. this is irresponsible husbandry. i am glad your fish is doing well in spite of the spot issue, but rest assured its internal anatomy likely is not, and you're not toughening the gar up, you're taking good chunks of time off its life and leaving it open to many more diseases. trust me...fishes die of parasites all the time; one doesn't really build "resistance" to giant tapeworms, acanthocephalans, or viral hemorragic septicemia--
--solomon

 

[xander]

They are temperate fish not Tropical... The above information is quite correct Temp is not as important as diet in captivity. Naturally however one should avoid extremes on either end and never change things abruptly. I personally find Spatula do better in the lower 70's but dips down to the lower 60's or ebbs up to the 90's for small periods of time will not hardly bother them. Sustaining them above or below the optimal temp of 70 to 75 consistantly, I would not advise. I have always used a winter cool down period for my gars and it definitly has strong husbandry value to do so.

thanks for the info! i believe i had read that you used a winter cool down period, could you elaborate on this? i believe you told me it was not necessary to do this, but now that you're saying there's a strong husbantry value, i'm definately interested to know why

i would leave that one alone if i were you...the observation is generally correct in this case. if you were to find gator gars somewhere in large numbers...and if it seemed cooler, chances are the habitat was at least decent.

i will continue in the other thread about food sometime soon, but it has seemed to be just too much of a headache as of late (and i have other things to do).

in short, for this thread, i would not worry about the spots, but keep track of them. the diet is questionable at best. feeding decent foods (shrimp, pellets, frozen fish) as a staple is what a responsible fish keeper would do, maybe feeders as a treat from time to time (i've done that too). terrestrial proteins and all the "logic" toward exposure to disease and poor conditions making the fish tougher are some of the most ridiculous and nonsensical justifications i have heard in a while.

one does not inoculate an individual with ebola or HIV or cancer to see if they can stand up to it and make them tougher...at least if they can help it. and this is not like antivenin leading to resistance either. this is irresponsible husbandry. i am glad your fish is doing well in spite of the spot issue, but rest assured its internal anatomy likely is not, and you're not toughening the gar up, you're taking good chunks of time off its life and leaving it open to many more diseases. trust me...fishes die of parasites all the time; one doesn't really build "resistance" to giant tapeworms, acanthocephalans, or viral hemorragic septicemia--
--solomon

might have put it across in the wrong way, but the intention of my earlier post was to inquire if it(gator gars thriving in cooler temps) were true, rather than to test the posters(badisbadis101) knowledge

 

[badisbadis101]

You bring up a very valid point. I really cannot be sure if they are thriving or not, but i do know that they are surviving, and likely reproducing, due to the existence of numerous smaller (less than 10" or so) gars. The population i am referring to is only a few miles from my house, and i have observed them on numerous occasions over the last year or so, and have never seen anything to suggest that they suffer from lower water temperatures.

Also, the cooler water temperatures in my area only last for a few months a year, as the water stays in the 70 - 80 range for a good portion of the year.