Here is my "medium nose" gar, a hybrid created at a hatchery between a longnose and a shortnose gar. It has a pleasing golden color, but this is normal coloration.

This picture is nice, showing the teeth. A small fella yet, but ask a tank mate, nothing to mess with. No worries, just a shredded tail, it will heal.

Here is my "medium nose" gar, a hybrid created at a hatchery between a longnose and a shortnose gar. It has a pleasing golden color, but this is normal coloration.

This picture is nice, showing the teeth. A small fella yet, but ask a tank mate, nothing to mess with. No worries, just a shredded tail, it will heal.

So shed some more light on this creature? What is the purpose of such a hybrid? Is it fertile?

Dean

No clue if it is fertile. No clue the exact purpose of it either [what kind of question is that anyways?](sorry if that comes across harsh, but, with the hostility to hybrids around here, I felt a bit protective of my fish). I can only venture that the hatchery "created" gar are hybridized to give them indiviuality over wild caught specimans? These are made for the aquarium trade.

These do occur in the wild naturally, from what I have read and seen - though there may be no confirming the ones I have seen. That was in waters that only have short and longnose, and the fish did not fit either one right, but somewhere inbetween.

It is probably my least favorite gar, since its a picky eater until now, and the most flighty. If I remember back when I kept short and longnose, that is how they both can be especially shortnose. I gave the other one to a friend, his is calm and eats like a horse (the gar, not my friend haha). Mine has caught up in length now, but is built thin like a longnose, and my friends is stocky like a shortnose. Coloration is similar enough between the two.

very cool, can get an idea of the unique coloration as well. how big is the fish now? gotta love a hybrid of two of the most skittish gar species --
--solomon

Oh I wasn't trying to be smartassed by asking the purpose of such a hybrid. I am a scientist, so I am just curious if there was a particular reason it was done. And I suspect the perceived hostility is not TO hybrids, but rather to those who use the term hybrid to explain any species variation they do not understand.

Are these critters still available? I had a beautiful longnose for almost two years. Started him in a 110 gal tank when he was 3 inhces...whne he reached 9 inches, he went to an outside pond. Alas, a scoundrel wild animal (skunk? raccoon?) took a huge chunk out of his head.

Dean

I suspect the perceived hostility is not TO hybrids, but rather to those who use the term hybrid to explain any species variation they do not understand.

This is it exactly. There is no hostility toward the users of the term either. It's just an all-too-convenient catch-all.

This is it exactly. There is no hostility toward the users of the term either. It's just an all-too-convenient catch-all.

Yeah,exactly, Irate!! By the way, that fish you have is gonna die.

Dean

Sorry Dmarkley. As usual written word is hard to interperet. I am interested in sunfish too, so I get into the hybrid discussions often. The cyprinids I see have some posts on that topic, but I have no clue really if they are or not, have a hard enough time telling alot of those species apart to begin with.

I don't know the guy who runs the hatchery. It was interesting this fish came from him to a pet shop which I was good friends with the guy who worked at that pet shop who asked me if I was interested in these fish. I had gotten my other gar through another fella that knows this same guy. His fish are for the aquarium trade, and my guess is that the hybrids are just because they are in demand because they are unique. I have two shortnose gator hybrids from there, and many people are hoping these become available again

I know the guy who ran the hatchery was doing a move or something similar and will not be "making" any fish this year either, so as far as that source the fish will not be available this year again. I am hoping that next year he does it again. If I find out fish are available to people, I will spread the word.

Each specie of gar acts for the most part similar, but each specie has its unique habits. The interesting thing with the hybrids is they take both the parents unique activities, and combine them I guess would be a way to put it. The shortnose gators, or Crocgar as they are nicknamed for example. They are much more calm than the shortnose, but more aggressive in searching around and interacting with each other than a gator. Its like a combination of the two "personalities", but at the same time not what I would expect - a midway point between calm and collected and hyper and nervous. These seem to take the best of both parents specie and are a real joy to keep.

They don't die unless Irate finds out where you live.

By the way, that fish you have is gonna die.

Well, thanks for the warning, but I'm afraid it's too late

Irate:

Give me your address,;

I need your clothes, your boots, and your motorcycle.;

One of us is in deep trouble.;

Oh, and none of my fish are fixin to die right yet, so if any do, I have your address handy and will be paying you a visit. My CPU is a neuralnet processor, a learning computer.

Yeah? Well I'm made of living metal. Bring it on!