Alligator Gar

[cu455]

Anyone want to share their experience with them? I picked one up today it is about 2 inches long.

 

[shane91]

pain in the butt

 

[shane91]

but they are awesome if you can get them feeding well and not have one that likes to bash itself against the tank. what size tank do you plan on keeping him in? and with whatever fish also

 

[redfishbluefish]

If this is the alligator gar I'm aware of....they are fresh water/brackish water fish. They also get big....real big...like six or seven feet. Unless this is some other species I'm not familiar with.

 

[erk]

If this is the alligator gar I'm aware of....they are fresh water/brackish water fish. They also get big....real big...like six or seven feet. Unless this is some other species I'm not familiar with.

If they live long enough, they will hit double digit length. Once saw one as big as the 11 ft kayak I was on.

 

[shane91]

they can supposedly get around 20 feet. mine was three feet and I had to give away as I could no longer keep a tank big enough for him. they also can grow fairly quick. can you post a better pic of the side of the fish.

 

[tj w]

Ha, are you kidding me? They have razor sharp teeth and armor as skin. The typically grow to 6-7 ft and the largest is 12 ft. They are very aggressive and will eat all fish and anything else. Yes they are brackish and freshwater. Im from louisiana and have alot of experience dealing with these fish in the wild. In no way should they be in an aquarium.

 

[hawkinsrgk]

There is one at the local bass pro shop and is about 5 feet. The tank is at least 15-20 feet long and 15 feet high. I am suprised they are being sold to the public

 

[knukles55]

"picked one up" doesnt really mean that it was bought lol..... could have gone fishing and said hey this little guy would look awsome in my tank lol

 

[hawkinsrgk]

"picked one up" doesnt really mean that it was bought lol..... could have gone fishing and said hey this little guy would look awsome in my tank lol

Good point. It just reminds me of when I saw a LFS selling baby pacu's

 

[tj w]

I doubt thats what the OP meant but ok, even then u should always research. Also, u just dont "pick one up"fishing.

 

[FL_Reefer]

I can't see these being that hard to get eating or keep alive. We used to catch them with hot dogs when I was a kid and they can stay out of the water for like 2 hours and then just swim off. They will eventually eat everything in your tank

 

[redfishbluefish]

I'll repeat....these are freshwater/brackish water fish. Has anyone had success keeping them in salt?

 

[FL_Reefer]

Probably not would be my guess.

 

[D block]

Hopefully @Dtackett will see this and give feedback.

 

[kschweer]

While there are some that have caught these in saltwater it's believed that they do not live in saltwater but can handle salt conditions on occasion possibly out of desperation for food. These fish are aggressive and grow fairly rapidly. While pretty cool I don't think they have a place in the hobby outside of aquariums or other very large systems. This 2" fish in time will turn into a monster.