Gar ID Quiz

[Lepisosteus platyrhincus]

hmm. alrighty then..... next guess was xanthic shorty

 

[E_americanus]

xanthic gars are more commly seen in lepisosteus species, leusism is far more commly found in atractosteus than lepisosteus.

um...are you speaking about the pet trade or nature? in the trade they are more seen in Atract only because that is what is usually bred for it, same with the old gold FL's, but those aren't around anymore.

in the wild the probability of it occurring should be relatively similar between the two genera (more of a population level issue than a genus-level) --
--solomon

 

[xander]

um...are you speaking about the pet trade or nature? in the trade they are more seen in Atract only because that is what is usually bred for it, same with the old gold FL's, but those aren't around anymore.

in the wild the probability of it occurring should be relatively similar between the two genera (more of a population level issue than a genus-level) --
--solomon

interesting, i thought i remember a few posts where richard was stating....

well here it is anyways.
http://forum.nanfa.org/index.php/topic/7904-albino-gars/

so are they equally occuring in the wild, or does what richard state on nanfa stand? i do remember seeing a pic of a leusistic longnose gar somewhere thou.

 

[carnivorekeeper]

cool

 

[E_americanus]

interesting, i thought i remember a few posts where richard was stating....

well here it is anyways.
http://forum.nanfa.org/index.php/topic/7904-albino-gars/

so are they equally occuring in the wild, or does what richard state on nanfa stand? i do remember seeing a pic of a leusistic longnose gar somewhere thou.

interesting thread...i never saw that discussion originally, nor did i know that forum was still running (can't seem to find it through normal channels).

anyway, if you follow the thread, you will see that there were eventually pics posted of a "leucistic" gar, and to me it looks like a Lepisosteus and not like a gator gar.

getting back to what richard said, he's right in that it's not commonly seen in Lep gars, but there are cases where it has been seen and does exist. like i said, these are population genetics issues in the wild, and in the trade they show up because they are farmed as such. the safe assumption is that these mutations could likely occur relatively equally (or have similar probability) between the genera because we just don't have enough data to make a well-based guess otherwise. not sure if that cleared things up or not--
--solomon

 

[xander]

interesting thread...i never saw that discussion originally, nor did i know that forum was still running (can't seem to find it through normal channels).

anyway, if you follow the thread, you will see that there were eventually pics posted of a "leucistic" gar, and to me it looks like a Lepisosteus and not like a gator gar.

getting back to what richard said, he's right in that it's not commonly seen in Lep gars, but there are cases where it has been seen and does exist. like i said, these are population genetics issues in the wild, and in the trade they show up because they are farmed as such. the safe assumption is that these mutations could likely occur relatively equally (or have similar probability) between the genera because we just don't have enough data to make a well-based guess otherwise. not sure if that cleared things up or not--
--solomon

yeah it clears it up, thanks. pity those gold floridas arent around/avail anymore, they sure were pretty.

 

[Lepisosteus platyrhincus]

yes they were. y dont we see them any more? nobody tryin to farm them?

 

[raymondk]

awesome gars

 

[Polypterus]

the safe assumption is that these mutations could likely occur relatively equally (or have similar probability) between the genera because we just don't have enough data to make a well-based guess otherwise.
--solomon

statistical assumption does indeed clearly state that the condition could occur equally within a population or either Genus. The largest hurdle in all of this is in the data and in proven cases of coloration mutations of this type within wild populations. Expression of either trait is rare in documented literature. Aquacultural information is also sparse as to occurrence and really no data is available except for a product. The procedures to create this product are unknown and it is unknown if they are selecting for a trait wittingly or unwittingly. Aquaculture operations have not released information on random mutation occurrence. Data still remain very deficient.

I guess it would best be questioned as "what is the commonality in the expression of the genetic trait?" By all available data (including anecdotal sources) there seems to be a marked difference in this regard that can be somewhat presumptively linked to Genus. Not scientifically tested but observed. Atractosteus seem more "prone" to one mutation and Lepisosteus the other.

As we know also (the big wild card), Gar can also be very complex in regards to coloration. What one may perceive as a Color mutation may actually just be a passing fad with unknown environmental, genetic triggers acting on it. The fish I posted is a perfect example of this.

Just gotta love these damn fish

 

[Lepisosteus platyrhincus]

wait...
that is a florida gar. non-xanthic. he now is normal colors with a very small amount of gold. looks almost completely normal.

am i right?