Posted on 07/29/2016 2:09:02 PM PDT by Red Badger
In this July 6, 2016 photo, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service personnel struggle with carrying an adult alligator gar to a transportation tank at the Private John Allen National Fish Hatchery in Tupelo, Miss. Alligator gar can weigh several hundred pounds and be over eight feet long. Several male and female adult alligator gar are captured in fresh water lakes and rivers and are brought to the facility so they can lay and fertilize the eggs as biologists and environmentalists are working to reintroduce the once-reviled alligator gar as a weapon against another huge species: invasive Asian carp. The gar are later returned to the wild. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
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It's a toothy giant that can grow longer than a horse and heavier than a refrigerator, a fearsome-looking prehistoric fish that plied U.S. waters from the Gulf of Mexico to Illinois until it disappeared from many states a half-century ago.
Persecuted by anglers and deprived of places to spawn, the alligator gar—with a head that resembles an alligator and two rows of needlelike teeth—survived primarily in southern states in the tributaries of the Mississippi River and Gulf of Mexico after being declared extinct in several states farther north. To many, it was a freak, a "trash fish" that threatened sportfish, something to be exterminated.
But the once-reviled predator is now being seen as a valuable fish in its own right, and as a potential weapon against a more threatening intruder: the invasive Asian carp, which have swum almost unchecked toward the Great Lakes, with little more than an electric barrier to keep them at bay. Efforts are now underway to reintroduce the alligator gar in the northern part of its old range.
"What else is going to be able to eat those monster carp?" said Allyse Ferrara, an alligator gar expert at Nicholls State University in Louisiana, where the species is relatively common. "We haven't found any other way to control them."
In this June 13, 2012 file photo, Asian carp, jolted by an electric current from a research boat, jump from the Illinois River near Havana, Ill. An effort is under way to reintroduce alligator gar into lakes, rivers and backwaters of several states possibly to help control populations of the invasive carp. (AP Photo/John Flesher, File) ************************************************************************************************************************
Alligator gar, the second-largest U.S. freshwater fish behind the West Coast's white sturgeon, have shown a taste for Asian carp, which have been spreading and out-competing native fish for food. The gar dwarf the invaders, which themselves can grow to 4 feet and 100 pounds. The largest alligator gar caught was 8 ½ feet and 327 pounds, though they can grow larger.
Native Americans once used their enamel-like scales as arrow points, and early settlers covered plow blades with their tough skin and scales. But a mistaken belief that they hurt sportfish led to widespread extermination throughout the 1900s, when they were often shot or blown up with dynamite.
"Some horrible things have been done to this fish," said Ferrara, adding that sport fisheries are healthier with gar to keep troublesome species like carp under control. "It's similar to how we used to think of wolves; we didn't understand the role they played in the ecosystem."
Gar now are being restocked in lakes, rivers and backwaters—sometimes in secret locations—in several states. In May, Illinois lawmakers passed a resolution urging state natural resources officials to speed up its program and adopt regulations to protect all four gar species native to the state.
But the extent to which gar could control carp now is not well understood, and some people are skeptical.
"I don't think alligator gar are going to be the silver bullet that is going to control carp, by any stretch of the imagination," said Rob Hilsabeck, an Illinois biologist who says the best hope is that carp will sustain an alligator gar fishery to draw trophy hunters.
Others are more optimistic about the impact once the larger fish is established, which might require cutting notches in canals to give them access to spawning sites.
Asian carp reproduce more quickly but alligator gar also grow fast: Alligator gar stocked in one Illinois lake six years ago already are more than 4 feet long.
Quinton Phelps, a Missouri state fish ecologist, said the only way to effectively control carp is when they're smaller, before they can spawn. Which is where alligator gar come in.
"There is potential for them to be a wonderful weapon, but it's just potential right now," he said.
One challenge is that huge gar could become a temptation for trophy fishermen, even before they're old enough to spawn.
"It will be interesting to see if fishermen have enough integrity to pass up a 7-foot fish that's 200 pounds," said Christopher Kennedy, a Missouri fisheries supervisor who's working on catch regulations. "We'd love to create a self-sustaining population that we can turn into a trophy fishery."
In this July 6, 2016 photo, small alligator gar swim in one of several tanks where their growth is monitored as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service personnel raise them at the Private John Allen National Fish Hatchery in Tupelo, Miss. Several male and female adult alligator gar are captured in fresh water lakes and rivers and are brought to the facility so they can lay and fertilize the eggs as biologists and environmentalists are working to reintroduce the once-reviled alligator gar as a weapon against the invasive Asian carp. The gar are later returned to the wild. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
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Still, the fish has a public relations problem in some circles, including a boating group in Illinois, whose members recently derided it as a "trash fish" and questioned reintroduction efforts.
But avid angler Olaf Nelson, who in 2013 was the first to catch an alligator gar in Illinois in 50 years—a 2-footer in a stocked lake—said they're important whether anyone wants to fish for them or not.
"Whether they're loved or hated, they're a natural part of the Illinois ecosystem," he said. "It's pretty rare that we can fix a mistake."
Read more at: http://phys.org/news/2016-07-huge-once-hated-fish-weapon-asian.html#jCp
When we are Lake Ten Killer, they do the same.
They just sidle up next to the boat “Hey Fellas...”
My Rapala’s are protected species too...
The ones here just basically ignore lures. You can drop your line right in front of them and they just look at it and swim away............
I have a picture of my Dad standing next to an alligator gar that he caught on the Red River near Texarkana back in the early 50s. It was at least an inch longer than his 6’3” in height. All I can say is that we lived with the gars then, we can live with them, belly full of invasive asian carp, now!
Tiger Muskies. Problem is with them and Muskies, they will attack humans. Dogs, cats, ducks.
In the immortal words of Richard Dreyfus' character, Hooper, "You are going to need a bigger boat!"
Declare them a sports fish as they did back in the 1950s White River in Arkansas. Depleted them real quick.
I can see it now...GARSHARK SNAKEHEAD! Genetically modified gar-shark-snakehead escapes and eats dum bass college teens on a float trip in the back woods...Teens spend all their time fighting each other to see who is the Alpha Male rather than fight the garshark-snakehead.
I saw a bunch of them dead downstream after Keystone Dam closed the gates a few years back.
Progressive, easy listening tribute rock, Eagles, Jackson Browne, available for parties, bar mitzvahs, cleaning your pond of Asian carp
I was at the boat ramp on Tenkiller a few years ago and saw a tied rope in the water. Thought I would see what was on the end of it.
I pulled and out of the water popped the biggest catfish head I had EVER seen. I might have done something else in my pants if it had been an alligator gar.
They never hurt the bluegill and bream population in Illinois, we had plenty of gar downstate... and plenty of good sportsfish. The indians would also use smaller gar skin to make quivers for their arrows. It makes a cool-looking quiver and dries hard as a rock.
Best tasting fish I ever had was called trash by many - it’s called the “buffalo.” Everyone told me it wouldn’t be any good but I took it home and fried it up, figuring that if it was as bad as everyone said it would be I could give it to the cats. But it was clean and delicious... so I gave the crappie we caught to the cats instead.
Not getting your hand cut up by sharp teeth is reason enough perhaps, especially for something so low on the totem pole as a fish.
Was fishing at a pond in Hulbert, OK and caught three Large Mouth Bass. Nice ones.
Got late in the day so pulled my string of fish and went to another pond with shade.
dropped my dead fish in the water to keep them fresh and went to the other side of the pond. Was casting and thought my “dead fish” were actually alive. It looked like they were flopping around from my view point.
Wasn’t getting any hits and it was late in the day. Three 5-7 pounders is a pretty good day.
Walked over grabbed hold of the string and pulled up fish lips. Terrapins got ‘em.
I was screaming and yelling, throwing rocks in the pond. Damn turtles!
My great day ended up sucking.
Looking back it is pretty funny. I’d still kill the turtle that robbed me though.
Bow fishing for Asian carp....not your average bow fishing
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nc-e8EGkLMo
these fish fight back!
(turn down sound)
Well wow that is a huge fish!
ping to #55
I have hunted varmints at night for lots of years alone with dogs
never been scared
was scared that day on that little 16 foot canoe
to funny even knowing before hand they were harmless
thinking this is where my wife finally gets rid of me
Whoa!
Exactly what we did as well.
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