2007 collection pics

What a shame.

It sucks, but atleast they use the meat down here.

Any idea how many eggs were in those ovaries? It's gotta be in the millions! It always amazes me how many young fish are able to produce and how few actually survive to adulthood.

Any idea how many eggs were in those ovaries? It's gotta be in the millions! It always amazes me how many young fish are able to produce and how few actually survive to adulthood.

I'll get a fecundity estimate on Monday. That fish was still kinda small, apparently the large ones have ovries that fill a 5 gallon bucket.

The big cats have been on the bite at my spot.

It sucks, but atleast they use the meat down here.

Hey BTW Sean I meant to add this in my PM the other day....
Can you locally get some smoked Gator gar???? or some fresh fillet? I have been looking for an internet source but can't find one...I have been dying to get some of this to cure my every other year addiction / obsession to gator gar meat....If you can find that really good smoked gar sausage I would forever be indebted to you....

On Gator Gar fecundity: I do believe the mean average was 4.0 eggs per gram / body weight. This is actually really high for most gars. the genus Lepisosteus is around 0.8 per Gram / body weight. Atractosteus do however take longer to mature than lepisosteus gars. (recollection based on Dr. Ferrara's dissertation Sean correct me if I'm wrong I'm going on memory )

Hey BTW Sean I meant to add this in my PM the other day....
Can you locally get some smoked Gator gar???? or some fresh fillet? I have been looking for an internet source but can't find one...I have been dying to get some of this to cure my every other year addiction / obsession to gator gar meat....If you can find that really good smoked gar sausage I would forever be indebted to you....

On Gator Gar fecundity: I do believe the mean average was 4.0 eggs per gram / body weight. This is actually really high for most gars. the genus Lepisosteus is around 0.8 per Gram / body weight. Atractosteus do however take longer to mature than lepisosteus gars. (recollection based on Dr. Ferrara's dissertation Sean correct me if I'm wrong I'm going on memory )

I will look for the gator gar meat. If I can't find it I will try and somke some of it myself. I will ask Dr. Ferrara about the egg stuff if I see her. We have people coming into town for the gar spawn so it's gonna be a busy week.

Had another busy weekend, but I somehow find the time for a little fishing/collecting.

Louisiana marsh redfish from LUMCON (Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium) in Cocodrie.
Bayou killifish and Oyster toadfish pics to follow.

dred - If youre coming to the Greensboro mtg that would be really cool if you'd bring some smoked gar for us to sample.

I will look for the gator gar meat. If I can't find it I will try and somke some of it myself. I will ask Dr. Ferrara about the egg stuff if I see her. We have people coming into town for the gar spawn so it's gonna be a busy week.

Gillnet bycatch from last night, all in the same net.
It's a shame we did not get to them sooner.

Goby collected from my catfish spot.

Gillnet bycatch from last night, all in the same net.
It's a shame we did not get to them sooner.

Are those brown watersnakes ?
ive seen watersnakes & rat snakes "gill netted" on land too by plastic mesh used for erosion control on streambanks.
i'm gonna blow if i ever find a king or mudsnake or heavenforbid a rainbow snake killed by plastic netting on a "stream restoration" project. leaving that stuff on a creekbank is like leaving razorblades on a daycare center playground.

Are those brown watersnakes ?
ive seen watersnakes & rat snakes "gill netted" on land too by plastic mesh used for erosion control on streambanks.
i'm gonna blow if i ever find a king or mudsnake or heavenforbid a rainbow snake killed by plastic netting on a "stream restoration" project. leaving that stuff on a creekbank is like leaving razorblades on a daycare center playground.

I think they are diamondback water snakes, but I don't know my snakes very well. This is only the second time we have gotten snakes in our net. It scared the hell out of me, because it was after midnight and I though I was grabbing a gar.

Goby collected from my catfish spot.

what species of goby is that? I have been geting gobies in my lfs alot that come in with the owners old bait which he gets down in florida but I have to say those dont look like the gobies he gets at all.

Its most likely Ctenogobius shufeldti, the freshwater goby. It could also be a darter goby.

I have to say, even for me- while these pics interest me, they still kind of have an eerie feeling to them .

I love the flathead catfish and gars, pretty neat pred/oddballs.

I have to say, even for me- while these pics interest me, they still kind of have an eerie feeling to them .

I love the flathead catfish and gars, pretty neat pred/oddballs.

The gore from lab work? It is disturbing, but its all done to better understand the fish or their enviroment. I can't say I enjoy going to the store for beer at 4am covered in fish blood.

Are those brown watersnakes ?
ive seen watersnakes & rat snakes "gill netted" on land too by plastic mesh used for erosion control on streambanks.
i'm gonna blow if i ever find a king or mudsnake or heavenforbid a rainbow snake killed by plastic netting on a "stream restoration" project. leaving that stuff on a creekbank is like leaving razorblades on a daycare center playground.

Likely Nerodia rhombifer... N. taxispilota usually has more blocky shaped dorsal blotches that are much more seperated from the lateral blotches.

I understand this Plastic netting well BTW, it is the bane of my work with herps...The carnage they produce is just not funny.

I've hever seen them in a group before, mating season maybe?

Raised banks are the bane of a floodplain ecologist.

I've hever seen them in a group before, mating season maybe?

The Diamondbacks should be in a mating congregation this time of year. It would not surprise me if one female got tangled in the gill net and a bunch of males just came right in after her.

I thought they looked like 3 girls, esp the 2 upper ones, based on tail shape & my experince with NC Nerodia spp.
Ive never seen rhombifer until now.

That must seem pretty weird to "regular people" that snakes scared the hell out of you BECAUSE YOU THOUGHT THEY WERE FISH ! (But then i guess you probably dont compare yourself to regular people all that much, esp at 4am covered in fish blood).

The Diamondbacks should be in a mating congregation this time of year. It would not surprise me if one female got tangled in the gill net and a bunch of males just came right in after her.