All fish / Lepisosteidae

Alligator Gar

Atractosteus spatula

Also known as alligator gar, gator gar, alligator garfish, gar, albino alligator gar, platinum alligator gar, ปลาอัลลิเกเตอร์, ปลาการ์, ikan aligator, アリゲーターガー, aligator gar, 鳄雀鳝

The largest of the gars, with a long armoured body covered in diamond-shaped ganoid scales and a broad, crocodile-like snout lined with teeth. It is kept by specialist and public aquaria as a living fossil, and pale platinum or leucistic forms are prized in Asia.

Care at a glance

Care level

Hard

Temperament

Aggressive

Adult size

150 cm

Temperature

18 to 30 °C

pH

6.5 to 8

Smallest tank

20000 litres

Keep as

Singly or in very large public or pond systems

Diet

Carnivore: fish, prawns, earthworms, pellets for predatory fish

Swims

Top of the tank

Lifespan

20 to 50 years

Water

Freshwater

Wild range

Southern USA (Mississippi basin, Gulf Coast drainages) and north-eastern Mexico

Breeding

It spawns in spring over flooded vegetation, scattering sticky eggs that are toxic to eat. Captive breeding happens only in hatcheries and large ponds, never in home aquariums.

Good to know

Adults can exceed 2 m and live for decades, so it is unsuitable for home tanks. Its roe is poisonous, and keeping or releasing it is banned or restricted in several places, including the EU invasive concerns, parts of the USA, and China where released fish have caused alarm.