Potential Future Tankmates: I'm worried...opinions please.

[r3dbullxxx]

Ignore that tool that answered you, that D bag has been answering like that under various accounts.
While I’m experienced with warmouth, I’ve never kept gar, so unfortunately I can’t help you

Ya...that's what a load of people have told me. I'm not deterred nor do I mind being told my ideas might be terrible...lol...
The big bad werewolf boogeyman on the hunt...lol. Maybe after 101 days and numerous accounts, he will move on.....hahaha...yawn...

I can at least appreciate his concern for the fish & doing research & whatnot.
What's ironic is the ignorance to the fact that what he's preaching is exactly why I came here looking for info based on people's real experience with those fish. He did use his big words and his respectful voice to blow some smoke my way but, otherwise...nil.

Anyways, I'll take any tips for the warmouth you have learned...since I probably won't end up mixing with the gar...but...so far, the warmouth I have are incredible....interactive and eating machines...so far they've eaten small mayans, shrimp, and earthworms. I have a tank of crayfish I've caught personally, but don't have the heart to feed them to the warmouths...lol.
I'm sure they'd love them, but I might just have to buy some as a treat...

I'm in the process of swapping the GROSS water out and setting up the plants and all that to mimic where they can hide, etc. so any tips or food suggestions, etc. would be more than welcome, even if they seem simple and obvious. Just having another opinion or confirmation that I'm not way off track would be great. Thanks!

 

[CrazyPhishMan]

I keep a 20” tropical gar with cichlids and others ranging in sizes from around 6”-15” if you got it eating pellets and well fed I doubt there will be an issue without a huge size disparity, as in the warmouth we’re like 2”
If you’re worried look at the width of the gars throat- that being said Cowturtle posted a video of platinums alligator gar eating what looks like a decent sized delhezi bichir

 

[Iwhoopedbatman]

If the warmouths keep growing a bit and you keep the gar well fed, I think you'd at least have a while. The question is really how big the gar is going to get. I've never kept Florida gars, but I understand they vary pretty wide in top out size. I did keep an alligator gar in a 180 up until he was about 20 inches, with no issues with cichlids as small as convicts and jewels, but then I had to rehome him because he was starting to look cramped and obviously wasn't going to stop growing. He accepted pellets from the moment I had him at about 6 inches, so never dealt with that issue.

 

[r3dbullxxx]

I keep a 20” tropical gar with cichlids and others ranging in sizes from around 6”-15” if you got it eating pellets and well fed I doubt there will be an issue without a huge size disparity, as in the warmouth we’re like 2”
If you’re worried look at the width of the gars throat- that being said Cowturtle posted a video of platinums alligator gar eating what looks like a decent sized delhezi bichir

Ok. Ty for info...The gar can barely get down fat feeder goldfish @2" and the warmouth/mayans range from 5-11"....the warmouth and the gar are eating machines. The gar chowed 8 goldfish last night and the WM almost that many rosies...I don't see how he'd eat the WM (any of them) no matter which orientation they are in, upright or laying down...but, I suppose there's nothing to say he wouldn't try...lol.

Another visual image I can say is that if you were to put the gar and the big warmouth side by side....the gar would obviously be longer by a few inches currently...but, it would take 2 or 2.5 gars stacked to reach the height of the warmouth. I'll check out that video...Thanks again!

 

[r3dbullxxx]

If the warmouths keep growing a bit and you keep the gar well fed, I think you'd at least have a while. The question is really how big the gar is going to get. I've never kept Florida gars, but I understand they vary pretty wide in top out size. I did keep an alligator gar in a 180 up until he was about 20 inches, with no issues with cichlids as small as convicts and jewels, but then I had to rehome him because he was starting to look cramped and obviously wasn't going to stop growing. He accepted pellets from the moment I had him at about 6 inches, so never dealt with that issue.

Unfortunately...this gar seems to have been only fed feeders prior...i have mosquito fish in there because I can get those for free any day and he doesn't even both with them at all. Doesn't even try...not even when I wait 1-2 days to feed him. I was hoping he'd get real hungry and give it a try, but nope. As soon as I put the orange fish in there...he kicks on stealth mode and starts eating...I also tried to give him an earthworm and poor guy almost choked to death and spit it out. He tried though, so it might have just been too long...but, I haven't tried it again...and, I use the worms mostly for the WM. I was going to try a piece of shrimp, but haven't yet...I have recently bought some pellets and wafer things that are high protein and all that for predator and other large fish, but haven't tried those yet either. It would be great if he did eat those at least sometimes because I went from 1 fish that eats live food to 10 recently with the WM and a few good size Mayans and it's hard to keep up with what those suckers eat...I also have regular tanks with more typical stuff like tilapia, dojo loaches, crayfish, jade sleeper gobies, snails, shrimp, etc. so, the food things snuck up on me a bit as I was excited about the variety of new fish I've caught recently. Thanks for the info.

 

[r3dbullxxx]

I also have access to a boatload of these things...lol. I was testing out some new gear and caught one....about 24-26"...and I see 10-20 any night I'm out just cruzin' the waterways by m y house...there are a few that are WAAAAY lighter in color...light gray...almost white...and about the same size that I'm on the hunt for just to see what's up with the coloring... Being unprepared, I had a spare tank on the porch for random already filled and filtering for smaller fish that I put him in long enough to get a photo and then back it went...since I'm always confused between the Florida and the Spotted, I don't have any idea really...I think my smaller one I got from my LFS is a Florida gar and he looks quite different than the one I caught. Maybe it's the same and with age, mine will look like the other...I dunno...Maybe Cowturtle would know because even info I finonline seems conflicting...Spotted on top and Florida below?

Sorry if some are duplicates...I'm not all that familiar with forum mechanics and it keeps doubling or tripling my images...lol.

 

[CrazyPhishMan]

I believe spotted are very rare. Most likely Florida, I have 3, they have a huge range in color

 

[Cowturtle]

Yea unfortunately there’s no easy way to tell them apart. If it came from a pet store 99% chance it’s a Florida. Unless you can verify where it was caught I’d always say Florida. I have three spotted gar I caught myself. I think a 6in+ war mouth would be fine with your current sized gar.

 

[r3dbullxxx]

Yea unfortunately there’s no easy way to tell them apart. If it came from a pet store 99% chance it’s a Florida. Unless you can verify where it was caught I’d always say Florida. I have three spotted gar I caught myself. I think a 6in+ war mouth would be fine with your current sized gar.

Cowturtle The big one with the clipped tail in the little tank at night is the one I caught...and there are tons more....I live in Merritt Island-Cocoa Beach-Cape Canaveral...so, I thought there was a chance that I've hit the jackpot with the potential that they were spotted. I see them every night and a few that seem to be significantly lighter in color, I just haven't gotten my hands on them to see why.

According to Florida (lol) this is their explanation:
The Florida and spotted gars are distinguishable from each other primarily by the snout length. The distance from the front of the eye to the back of the gill cover is less than 2/3 the length of the snout in the Florida gar, while it is more than 2/3 of the length of the snout in the spotted gar...as of May 10, 2017.

So, according to this if I measure the snout and measure from the eye to the gill flap and divide it, I'll know? hehehe.
Why is it always mathematics?

Side note: I've seen/follow the videos on Youtube and find it amazing you are here and chatting. Thanks for the help!

 

[Joshuakahan]

Ya...that's what a load of people have told me. I'm not deterred nor do I mind being told my ideas might be terrible...lol...
The big bad werewolf boogeyman on the hunt...lol. Maybe after 101 days and numerous accounts, he will move on.....hahaha...yawn...

I can at least appreciate his concern for the fish & doing research & whatnot.
What's ironic is the ignorance to the fact that what he's preaching is exactly why I came here looking for info based on people's real experience with those fish. He did use his big words and his respectful voice to blow some smoke my way but, otherwise...nil.

Anyways, I'll take any tips for the warmouth you have learned...since I probably won't end up mixing with the gar...but...so far, the warmouth I have are incredible....interactive and eating machines...so far they've eaten small mayans, shrimp, and earthworms. I have a tank of crayfish I've caught personally, but don't have the heart to feed them to the warmouths...lol.
I'm sure they'd love them, but I might just have to buy some as a treat...

I'm in the process of swapping the GROSS water out and setting up the plants and all that to mimic where they can hide, etc. so any tips or food suggestions, etc. would be more than welcome, even if they seem simple and obvious. Just having another opinion or confirmation that I'm not way off track would be great. Thanks!View attachment 1518161

I had my warmouth for about a year before I sold it, but it was pretty easy. Basically if it couldn’t eat it, it got along with it. But it could eat surprisingly large fish, found that out the hard way. I just kept the water clean and around 78f and tank mates changed sometimes but it was fine with bichirs, belly crawler pike, severums and a few other SA/CA