gars and sizes

[bolty]

there is a couple of gars in my lfs and i was just wanting you guys to help me out, what im after (i no nout about gars apart from feeding them lol) is how many typs/sp's are there and there max out size also what tank size would i need 4 them

sorry about the thread i no its not a liked thread but i would like to no more as im thinking of getting 1 (and a new tank )

Thanks ppl Shane

P.S the guy in the fish house said they get 18inch max but not often past the 1ft mark!

 

[bolty]

stuff the gar's

 

[beblondie]

Gars
Atractosteus spatula- alligator gar 6-10 '
Atractosteus tropicus- tropical gar 4'
Atractosteus tristoechus- cuban gar 6'
Lepisosteus osseus- longnose gar 6'
Lepisosteus platostomus- shortnose gar 2 1/2'-
Lepisosteus oculatus- spotted gar 4'
Lepisosteus platyrhincus- florida gar 4'
hybrid gars
Lepisosteus platostomus x Atractosteus spatula- Crocodile gar type I
Lepisosteus platyrhincus or oculatus x Atractosteus spatula-Crocidile gar type 2
Four known types exist both in wild and cultivated varieties:

Atractosteus spatula X Lepisosteus platostomus (Croc gar type I)
A. spatula X L. platyrhinchus (Croc gar type II)
A. spatula X L. oculatus
A. spatula X L. osseus

There is a strong possiability of A.spatula X A. tropicus from mexican aquacultured fish

 

[Infblue]

P.S the guy in the fish house said they get 18inch max but not often past the 1ft mark!

if the ones at the lfs are any of the gars beblondie listed, then that statement cannot be more wrong.

the size of the tank will depend on what type they are. the sizes beblondie listed are mostly wild size, and in captivity they usually don't get as big. but the smallest of them, the shortnose, can still get to 2ft in captivity. However, shortnose are more difficult to track down compared to say florida or spotted.

gars aren't that flexible and can't turn tight corner, so to house an adult comfortably you would eventually need a tank thats at least 3ft wide.

 

[E_americanus]

if the ones at the lfs are any of the gars beblondie listed, then that statement cannot be more wrong.

the size of the tank will depend on what type they are. the sizes beblondie listed are mostly wild size, and in captivity they usually don't get as big. but the smallest of them, the shortnose, can still get to 2ft in captivity. However, shortnose are more difficult to track down compared to say florida or spotted.

gars aren't that flexible and can't turn tight corner, so to house an adult comfortably you would eventually need a tank thats at least 3ft wide.

definitely agree with ricky on this. should also be noted that if you are in the US, www.tfdfish.com (tropical fish distributors) have shortnoses readily available (as ricky said, up until this point they were somewhat hard to come by). these are probably the best (size-wise) of the true gars for the home aquarium since they are the smallest species, and they are also relatively cheap (~$20). pics of all species can be seen at www.primitivefish.com for further reference. you can also check threads throughout this forum as many of these topics have been addressed to some extent. good luck!--
--solomon

 

[bolty]

they have all gone now (2 of them) they did look verry nice but not noing what i was getting i think i did best staying away, ill just have to put up with seeing you guys fish

thatks 4 the replys ppl Shane

 

[bolty]

definitely agree with ricky on this. should also be noted that if you are in the US, www.tfdfish.com (tropical fish distributors) have shortnoses readily available (as ricky said, up until this point they were somewhat hard to come by). these are probably the best (size-wise) of the true gars for the home aquarium since they are the smallest species, and they are also relatively cheap (~$20). pics of all species can be seen at www.primitivefish.com for further reference. you can also check threads throughout this forum as many of these topics have been addressed to some extent. good luck!--
--solomon

me thinks gars are a little big well 4 me that is