gar id

[hikogator]

im from indonesia,and i guess people in my country is confused how to different spotted gar and florida gar.
so i want to ask.
which of florida gar and spotted gar who is more rare in the wild.....
show some pict too please,true spotted,true florida,and spotted x florida.
thanks.

 

[AU_Arowana-RG]

It can be hard to tell.

I do know that finding true spotteds will be difficult lest you know distribution differences between the two species and/or go to a fish hatchery.

Otherwise, physical differences alone won't be enough for most cases of classification.

 

[Wiggles92]

It's pretty much impossible to tell the two apart unless you know the slight nuances to look for in their pattern and morphology and/or the location that the gar was collected. Remember that the overall pattern of these gars is not a valid way of identifying their species. For example, not all spotted gars will have spots on their bellies just as not all Florida gars will lack spots on their bellies; anyone who tells you otherwise is incorrect. Pictures will not help with a positive ID because of how similar these gars appear to the average fish keeper. Lastly, outside of the U.S., the vast majority, if not all, gars labelled as Florida/spotted gars are really just Florida gars.

As for the rarity of these gars in the wild, the Florida gar has a very small distribution and is mainly restricted to Florida yet is farmed intensely for the fish industry while the spotted gar has a fairly large distribution encompassing much of the eastern U.S. yet it is not farmed very much, if at all (to my knowledge).

 

[AU_Arowana-RG]

the spotted gar has a fairly large distribution encompassing much of the eastern U.S. yet it is not farmed very much, if at all (to my knowledge).

I'm not sure, but if I am correct, Sol did mention that there were some hatcheries in place for the Spotted Gar. He also noted that, for some, rare cases, the Spotteds actually did have a notable number of physical differences compared to Floridas, at least with the Wild specimens he was dealing with.

 

[hikogator]

i see.....
anyway which is more expensive ?

 

[Wiggles92]

I'm not sure, but if I am correct, Sol did mention that there were some hatcheries in place for the Spotted Gar. He also noted that, for some, rare cases, the Spotteds actually did have a notable number of physical differences compared to Floridas, at least with the Wild specimens he was dealing with.

Those notable physical differences that he speaks of a pretty tough for us average gar keepers to pick up on, but gar experts such as Richard and himself typically can easily tell the difference between the two species; it seems like its something that is learned after dealing with these gars for a while.

i see.....
anyway which is more expensive ?

Well, I would say that Florida gars will definitely be cheaper considering where you're located and knowing that spotted gars have yet to be widely exported, if at all.

 

[hikogator]

in u're country is that florida gar is cheaper too ?

 

[Wiggles92]

in u're country is that florida gar is cheaper too ?

Yes.

 

[hikogator]

how much price for 1 feet spotted gar,in us dollar...?

 

[Wiggles92]

how much price for 1 feet spotted gar,in us dollar...?

Based off of prices that I've found over the past few months, I'd say that $30-50 is about normal depending on who's selling the gar (LFS, vendor, etc.).