Gar ID - Take a Guess...
- Thread starter E_americanus
- Start date
and the species is...
longnose gar, Lepisosteus osseus (congrats to everyone -and there were a lot- that got it correct, especially those that made some notes about the details of the fish. thanks for everyone who guessed).
although longnoses are the most widespread species of gar, we're still noting some interesting similarities and differences between juveniles of this species and others. some of the key features to note are the relatively slim body shape, the broken lateral stripe/blotches, and the relatively long snout...although the snout doesn't always present itself this early, and sometimes, especially with smaller individuals, one must wait to see how the fish develops.
tail patterns amongst lepisosteus genus can be variable but generally look the same overall.
more juvenile gar pics to come--
--solomon
PS-- the short of this gar's story is that richard caught it right off the dock of the field station where we were staying...it was pretty interesting seeing as i have never seen a gar out that close to Lake Michigan, and it literally rode a mat of vegetation out to the dock!--
longnose gar, Lepisosteus osseus (congrats to everyone -and there were a lot- that got it correct, especially those that made some notes about the details of the fish. thanks for everyone who guessed).
although longnoses are the most widespread species of gar, we're still noting some interesting similarities and differences between juveniles of this species and others. some of the key features to note are the relatively slim body shape, the broken lateral stripe/blotches, and the relatively long snout...although the snout doesn't always present itself this early, and sometimes, especially with smaller individuals, one must wait to see how the fish develops.
tail patterns amongst lepisosteus genus can be variable but generally look the same overall.
more juvenile gar pics to come--
--solomon
PS-- the short of this gar's story is that richard caught it right off the dock of the field station where we were staying...it was pretty interesting seeing as i have never seen a gar out that close to Lake Michigan, and it literally rode a mat of vegetation out to the dock!--
