Gator with other Gars

[teohha]

I have a Florida Gar and am hoping to get a Gator Gar.... I wonder if the Gator Gar can be a good tank mate of my Florida Gar? I plan to get a Gator which is a little smaller 6" then the Florida 7". I have seen quite a few tank photos with Gar mixtures.. i would just like to be sure, so that my Florida is safe and happy.

Since i am on the topic which Gars are compatible with each other? Or none are.

My apologies if this is a dumb question.. I just couldn't find the right thread using the search.

 

[teohha]

After some more research i think the Gator Gar is out of the question, they are gigantic!

Strange that the LFS said that his Gators only get to around 2' Max. Is this a case of mistaken identity actually Shortnose Gar or are these Gator Hybrids?

Does anybody have an estimate on how large hybrids grow up to?

 

[raymondk]

gators can get to 15' long

 

[E_americanus]

gators can get to 15' long

no, they can't.

 

[teohha]

What about Hybrid Gators? How large to they get?

 

[screaminleeman]

I have two Gator gars (started at 2" and are now 4.5 & 5.5") in with a Longnose gar ~ 14 inch without issue. Nothing else < 3" that has ever entered the tank has the LNG viewed as anything other then a snack.

In fact, the LNG and Gator gars seriously seem to have taken a likeing to each other, and have virtually alieviated the "stealing" of food from the LNG by a 8" Tiger Oscar & 7" Red Bay Snook since the addition of his/her two little buddies! The size difference will not be allowed to become a factor. The LNG will hopefully be > 2' by late spring to early summer and will go into my spring fed farm pond to help with a massive Bluegill overpopulation challenge.

Could alligator gars ever be conditioned to survive in MD. ponds? Since 1979, the ~ 150' pond has never frozen over within 30' of the two above ground spring feeds, and the springs have never read below 44 degrees F in dead winter!

 

[E_americanus]

I have two Gator gars (started at 2" and are now 4.5 & 5.5") in with a Longnose gar ~ 14 inch without issue. Nothing else < 3" that has ever entered the tank has the LNG viewed as anything other then a snack.

In fact, the LNG and Gator gars seriously seem to have taken a likeing to each other, and have virtually alieviated the "stealing" of food from the LNG by a 8" Tiger Oscar & 7" Red Bay Snook since the addition of his/her two little buddies! The size difference will not be allowed to become a factor. The LNG will hopefully be > 2' by late spring to early summer and will go into my spring fed farm pond to help with a massive Bluegill overpopulation challenge.

Could alligator gars ever be conditioned to survive in MD. ponds? Since 1979, the ~ 150' pond has never frozen over within 30' of the two above ground spring feeds, and the springs have never read below 44 degrees F in dead winter!

this isn't a very useful comparison to the OP; although that's great they are getting along, if the situation were reversed between species the gator gars would have eaten the longnose by now, no question.

gators are much more aggressive than longnoses, and will grow much faster. longnoses are the most gape-limited of the gars, and so the size of prey they can take down is much smaller than what most other species can consume.

the gators in your tank are still very small, but they will catch up and surpass the longnose in no time, at which point they would likely need to be separated (for the safety of the longnose, possibly other tankmates).

to the OP, i would gain experience with your Florida gar first, and then eventually move on to gator gars if you can afford the space. you don't need a 10000 gallon pond, but gators do grow fast, large, and are much more aggressive than other gar species. they are not for gar beginners; best to wait on that one--
--solomon

 

[Lepisosteus platyrhincus]

gators can get to 15' long

thank you! ive been looking for a reason to do this.



gators can not get 15'

 

[E_americanus]

thank you! ive been looking for a reason to do this.



gators can not get 15'

yessssss.

i seriously need to make this my facebook profile pic at some point.

 

[Lepisosteus platyrhincus]

i