Did I owned a Tropical Gar?!

[MikeS]

hi!

well, I saw this picture on Aqua Bonito homepage;
http://aqua-bonito.web.infoseek.co.jp/BIG/Atractosteus%20tropicus09.4-02bonitoM.jpg

This gar is named as a Atractosteus tropicus.
Many years ago I owned a gar (I bought it as Lepisosteus oculatus), which looked exactly like that one in the shop.
I attached two bad pics of my old gar.
What do you think, which species is that?

I hope, I owned a Lepisosteus, because I sold him for less money .
But in my opinion he has a different looking, not "spotted gar" like, or?
Hope you can ID him with the help of this pictures...

 

[jworth]

the pictures arent the best for id'ing but i am going to say it was a florida gar and not a tropical

 

[Cichla dude]

yes

 

[E_americanus]

yours was a Florida gar (often called spotted gars in the Asian market), the tropical gar looks ostensibly similar, but is actually different. one of the big things to note is that your fish has round spots on the caudal fin, whereas tropical gars have elongate striations instead of spots. nice Florida though--
--solomon

 

[xander]

yes

dude...

no you had a florida gar, i believe "many years ago" there weren't many (if any) trop gars in the US market. till sol brought them in.

 

[MikeS]

hi,

thanks!
ok, I think the chance that I got a tropical instead of a florida gar was too small