did some reading, some info i thought was worth reposting on here. but first...
pic of a gar id by everyone as shortnose several years back. looks like a washed out spotted/florida to me, what're your opinions?
http://aquaticpredators.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=14924&st=0
A long while back I remember hearing a bit about this from
a Gar researcher named Bill Ballard then later some comments by Ray Wolff.
Today while playing with Water snakes along the shore here in the Detroit river,
I ran across something interesting. A fisherman discarded his dead bait along the shore of a canal with a very slow current. Sure enough I found a water snake taking advantage of this and feeding on some of the dead minnows. as I was watching him taking note of the behavior, I noticed he was not alone there was a first year Longnose just off to the side. Naturally my research went out the window as I would rather watch the gar for a bit.
Water snake ate about seven of the minnows then moved on to a spot about two feet from me to lay in the warm shallows. Gar did something peculiar and moved toward the dead Emerald shiner. I thought at first this was to just scavenge as I have seen longnosed do this, rather though it just remained motionless just next to the remaining fish.
Within a few minutes a good sized round goby and a few yearling Largemouth bass
started to mill about to pick up some free food.
Sure enough, that gar nabbed the goby and slinked away to some nearby weeds only to return again and take another goby about five minutes later.
Sure as hell that fish was baiting for prey. Heard about it but never seen it before
Quite interesting to see this in action.
Just thought I'd share this little trick that these great fish play, Could have husbandry applications or provide a form of enrichment to captive fish. How so? not sure yet
but I'm working on it.
--richard/polypterus/booklamprey
http://aquaticpredators.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=16078
as the above folks have said, a gar resting on the bottom is a pretty common occurance so don't be alarmed. however, to play devil's advocate (or maybe just suggesting close observation down the line), a gar resting on the bottom can often mean one of two things, both on opposite ends of the spectrum:
1. it could be an indication that it is comfortable with its surroundings and feels safe enough to stay on the bottom and rest (if there are other large aggressive fishes in the tank, they will often remain up at the top or midwater column). they will also sometimes do this if the tank has been recently rearranged or if a new fish (of comparatively substantial size) has been recently added.
either way, this is usually nothing to worry about as long as the fish seems to be breathing normally and orienting itself properly (not listing to one side or the other).
2. it could be a sign of severe stress. watch for extremely labored breathing (gars will often move their mouths to some extent while breathing on the bottom, so look for more of a gasping action before you get too concerned) and/or listing to one side or the other.
the differences between 1 & 2 are pretty clear, so don't get too paranoid, just keep an eye out for symptoms of stress. another good indicator will be washed out color/pattern...EXCEPT at night when gars are normally devoid of much color and pattern.
hopefully those comments raised more awareness than paranoia, but please let us know if we can clarify or provide any further information. best of luck with your gar, it sounds like it is doing quite well!--
--solomon/E_americanus
http://aquaticpredators.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=16618
here are a lot of different factors that contribute or cause this. an initial issue is stress as newly introduced gars will often go straight to the bottom...you are obviously past this stage
gars will also rest on the bottom when they seem to be comfortable in their surroundings, i have noticed this on many occasions.
also, some gars seem more prone to rest on the bottom than others. i think this is more of an individual preference and possibly an age issue. my first Cuban would hardly ever rest on the bottom, and wouldnt even chase food to the bottom; now he does it occasionally, but still much less than all the other gars. the second Cuban will occupy all levels of the tank.
the tropical gars seem to do this according to size. my larger t-gars will rest on the bottom from time to time, but all the small ones always float in the weeds or in groups at the surface. this may be instinctive, since in the wild the young take refuge in the emergent/submerged vegetation, and dont rest on the bottom (more predators are down there as well).
so its all highly variable and can be individually based; good observation and the good news is that you dont need to worry about any of it as abnormal behavior
--
--solomon/E_americanus
http://aquaticpredators.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=24666
if anyone has a problem with me reposting this let me know and i'll take it off, thanks
pic of a gar id by everyone as shortnose several years back. looks like a washed out spotted/florida to me, what're your opinions?
http://aquaticpredators.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=14924&st=0
A long while back I remember hearing a bit about this from
a Gar researcher named Bill Ballard then later some comments by Ray Wolff.
Today while playing with Water snakes along the shore here in the Detroit river,
I ran across something interesting. A fisherman discarded his dead bait along the shore of a canal with a very slow current. Sure enough I found a water snake taking advantage of this and feeding on some of the dead minnows. as I was watching him taking note of the behavior, I noticed he was not alone there was a first year Longnose just off to the side. Naturally my research went out the window as I would rather watch the gar for a bit.
Water snake ate about seven of the minnows then moved on to a spot about two feet from me to lay in the warm shallows. Gar did something peculiar and moved toward the dead Emerald shiner. I thought at first this was to just scavenge as I have seen longnosed do this, rather though it just remained motionless just next to the remaining fish.
Within a few minutes a good sized round goby and a few yearling Largemouth bass
started to mill about to pick up some free food.
Sure enough, that gar nabbed the goby and slinked away to some nearby weeds only to return again and take another goby about five minutes later.
Sure as hell that fish was baiting for prey. Heard about it but never seen it before
Quite interesting to see this in action.
Just thought I'd share this little trick that these great fish play, Could have husbandry applications or provide a form of enrichment to captive fish. How so? not sure yet
but I'm working on it.
--richard/polypterus/booklamprey
http://aquaticpredators.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=16078
as the above folks have said, a gar resting on the bottom is a pretty common occurance so don't be alarmed. however, to play devil's advocate (or maybe just suggesting close observation down the line), a gar resting on the bottom can often mean one of two things, both on opposite ends of the spectrum:
1. it could be an indication that it is comfortable with its surroundings and feels safe enough to stay on the bottom and rest (if there are other large aggressive fishes in the tank, they will often remain up at the top or midwater column). they will also sometimes do this if the tank has been recently rearranged or if a new fish (of comparatively substantial size) has been recently added.
either way, this is usually nothing to worry about as long as the fish seems to be breathing normally and orienting itself properly (not listing to one side or the other).
2. it could be a sign of severe stress. watch for extremely labored breathing (gars will often move their mouths to some extent while breathing on the bottom, so look for more of a gasping action before you get too concerned) and/or listing to one side or the other.
the differences between 1 & 2 are pretty clear, so don't get too paranoid, just keep an eye out for symptoms of stress. another good indicator will be washed out color/pattern...EXCEPT at night when gars are normally devoid of much color and pattern.
hopefully those comments raised more awareness than paranoia, but please let us know if we can clarify or provide any further information. best of luck with your gar, it sounds like it is doing quite well!--
--solomon/E_americanus
http://aquaticpredators.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=16618
here are a lot of different factors that contribute or cause this. an initial issue is stress as newly introduced gars will often go straight to the bottom...you are obviously past this stage
gars will also rest on the bottom when they seem to be comfortable in their surroundings, i have noticed this on many occasions.
also, some gars seem more prone to rest on the bottom than others. i think this is more of an individual preference and possibly an age issue. my first Cuban would hardly ever rest on the bottom, and wouldnt even chase food to the bottom; now he does it occasionally, but still much less than all the other gars. the second Cuban will occupy all levels of the tank.
the tropical gars seem to do this according to size. my larger t-gars will rest on the bottom from time to time, but all the small ones always float in the weeds or in groups at the surface. this may be instinctive, since in the wild the young take refuge in the emergent/submerged vegetation, and dont rest on the bottom (more predators are down there as well).
so its all highly variable and can be individually based; good observation and the good news is that you dont need to worry about any of it as abnormal behavior
--solomon/E_americanus
http://aquaticpredators.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=24666
if anyone has a problem with me reposting this let me know and i'll take it off, thanks
