Keeping Gar in a Pond?
- Thread starter Wiggles92
- Start date
OK Wiggles,
We went out yesterday to see how hard it would be to catch young longnose with a cast net, and...it's a little harder than I thought it was going to be. I figured their teeth would get tangled in a monofilament cast net, making them easy to snag, since all they had to do was run into the net and you had them, right? It didn't exactly work that way though, and the gar would slide out the bottom pretty easily. I may try it again with a nylon cast net and see if that works better. I did learn that it's almost impossible to catch them in deep (clear) water, as they'll dive straight down when the net hits the water. If you can corner them in shallow water, it's a lot more effective. We caught a couple, and I kept one (about 18" long). I suspect you aren't going to find any smaller than that this time of year, so you may have to wait until next spring to catch smaller ones in your area. May be cheaper on ya to just buy them, lol.
Cheers,
Don
We went out yesterday to see how hard it would be to catch young longnose with a cast net, and...it's a little harder than I thought it was going to be. I figured their teeth would get tangled in a monofilament cast net, making them easy to snag, since all they had to do was run into the net and you had them, right? It didn't exactly work that way though, and the gar would slide out the bottom pretty easily. I may try it again with a nylon cast net and see if that works better. I did learn that it's almost impossible to catch them in deep (clear) water, as they'll dive straight down when the net hits the water. If you can corner them in shallow water, it's a lot more effective. We caught a couple, and I kept one (about 18" long). I suspect you aren't going to find any smaller than that this time of year, so you may have to wait until next spring to catch smaller ones in your area. May be cheaper on ya to just buy them, lol.
Cheers,
Don
Wow great thread I was actually researching info on keeping gar when I found it 
. Anyway I actually caught a roughly 1.5 inch gar in a local spot here in TN about 2 months with a aquarium net and a flash light. little buggers are hard to see look in plants and grassy areas near shore at night they look like little sticks.
If putting into pond take your time to acclimatize them they are sensitive and will die if you do not. I put mine in a 10 gal tank and fed him mosquito larvae for the first month or so and then switched to minnow fry very small fry. he has grown to about 5 inches already and is now eating guppies and is being moved to a 75 gal tank hopefully today after work. Native species will handle the climate the best but handle them gently. Also look into local regulations on capture here I am required to have a fishing licence as long as I possess the fish. I also had to obtain him from a private water source to legally take him at that size. So even if you dont follow them it is important that you know them and take proper precautions. Due to you putting them in a pond instead of an aquarium they will prolly be less strict. Personally I wouldnt purchase them it is far more rewarding to me to catch and raise them myself. we have 2 55 gal a 35 tall a 10 and a 75 and all our fish and critters except ones housed in one of the 55 gal tanks are wild caught. It has been an amazing way to learn about the animals.Best of luck
. Anyway I actually caught a roughly 1.5 inch gar in a local spot here in TN about 2 months with a aquarium net and a flash light. little buggers are hard to see look in plants and grassy areas near shore at night they look like little sticks.If putting into pond take your time to acclimatize them they are sensitive and will die if you do not. I put mine in a 10 gal tank and fed him mosquito larvae for the first month or so and then switched to minnow fry very small fry. he has grown to about 5 inches already and is now eating guppies and is being moved to a 75 gal tank hopefully today after work. Native species will handle the climate the best but handle them gently. Also look into local regulations on capture here I am required to have a fishing licence as long as I possess the fish. I also had to obtain him from a private water source to legally take him at that size. So even if you dont follow them it is important that you know them and take proper precautions. Due to you putting them in a pond instead of an aquarium they will prolly be less strict. Personally I wouldnt purchase them it is far more rewarding to me to catch and raise them myself. we have 2 55 gal a 35 tall a 10 and a 75 and all our fish and critters except ones housed in one of the 55 gal tanks are wild caught. It has been an amazing way to learn about the animals.Best of luck
I don't know about your gar up north but down here jug lines work the best. Yeh I know a lot of people on here might not agree with it but if you monitor them constently then you should be ok. get you some cut bait. A fish from your pond now as bait. Im guessing it is stocked to fish since it has smallies in it. Then get you a circle hook or treble hook and a gallon jug, or a styro-foam float or boat bouyis work well. Make you a few of them and get some good line and set each one at a diffrent depth. Throw that in the area you are fishing and just monitor them every so often. Works for us down here. Not saying you will always catch a gar but me and my fishing buddies have had better luck that way then with a rod and reel. And this is one day what could be swimming in your pond
I haven't been on MFK for a while and this is definitely an old thread, but I think it's worth digging up since I have new developments in the project:
I finally managed to get some gar!!!
I was on my dock today at my camp, and I looked in the water and saw a little gar. I quickly scooped him out with my hand and got him into a container with some water from the river. I eventually got three more to bring me up to a grand total of four.
The largest is about 1.5" long while the smallest is about 0.5" long.
I haven't taken any pictures yet, but I will once I get the grow out tank set up (I'll be using water, plants, and rocks from the river and my ponds to ensure that it's got the necessary bacteria and such) I will post some pictures.
I'm thinking that they're longnose gar, but I'll double check once I take some pictures.
I finally managed to get some gar!!!
I was on my dock today at my camp, and I looked in the water and saw a little gar. I quickly scooped him out with my hand and got him into a container with some water from the river. I eventually got three more to bring me up to a grand total of four.
The largest is about 1.5" long while the smallest is about 0.5" long.
I haven't taken any pictures yet, but I will once I get the grow out tank set up (I'll be using water, plants, and rocks from the river and my ponds to ensure that it's got the necessary bacteria and such) I will post some pictures.
I'm thinking that they're longnose gar, but I'll double check once I take some pictures.
I caught them in the Allegheny River between Lock & Dam 5 and Lock & Dam 6.
I hadn't planned on fishing or anything, so I didn't have my net with me but the gar proved easier to catch than I had expected; I was able to catch them with just cupped hands surprisingly. They were swimming fairly close to shore around my dock, so they were fairly easy to spot and catch.
I haven't taken any pictures of them yet, but I'm now 99% sure that they are longnose gar after comparing them to pictures from the gar I.D. thread.
I hadn't planned on fishing or anything, so I didn't have my net with me but the gar proved easier to catch than I had expected; I was able to catch them with just cupped hands surprisingly. They were swimming fairly close to shore around my dock, so they were fairly easy to spot and catch.
I haven't taken any pictures of them yet, but I'm now 99% sure that they are longnose gar after comparing them to pictures from the gar I.D. thread.
So apparently the gar weren't satisfied with the tiny water striders and the mosquito larvae I gave them...
I now only have 3 gar
; the smallest gar became breakfast/lunch between the time I left for work and the time I got back with feeder guppies. Luckily, the other three are eating the guppies I gave them, so hopefully there will be no more casualties. I'm about to head down to my camp again, so I'll hopefully get a few more (these will go directly in the pond though).
I now only have 3 gar
; the smallest gar became breakfast/lunch between the time I left for work and the time I got back with feeder guppies. Luckily, the other three are eating the guppies I gave them, so hopefully there will be no more casualties. I'm about to head down to my camp again, so I'll hopefully get a few more (these will go directly in the pond though).I posted last year with one gar and have since released him to a private pond at about 14 inches and brought home 18 new 1 inch babies a couple months ago. I would recommend housing them in tanks increasing in size from a 10 to a 75 until they reach approx 6 inches in length before placing in pond. The survivors from the 18 i brought home are all the most aggressive eaters of the bunch. I started them on mosquito larvae fed 2 or 3 times daily out of the 55 gal I keep on the back deck as a larvae breeder. I did this until they reached about 2 inches then switched them gradually over to only minnows. The best way I have found for catching minnows is after dark with a flash light bug net and a bucket. I usually have to go every 3 ish days and bring home about 50 or 60 1 inch or smaller minnows per trip to feed the 6 gar I have kept. WARNING they will radially eat each other if not WELL fed. Out of all my losses only 3 were not to being eaten by more aggressive siblings and all 3 of those were not aggressive enough to catch the prey I put in for feeding and seemed to refuse food until death. They will grow fast to about 6 or 8 inches then their growth slowed if I remember correctly from last year. If you can find very small minnow fry to feed them when they are small they will show dramatic growth compared to insect larvae. Good luck and if you have any questions feel free to email me directly helix149@hotmail.com
