Gar Week Day 1 (longnose gar)

Hello! I have decided to start GAR WEEK today and it will continue on for the rest of the week (unless I forget) 

Today I will be talking about my favorite species, the LONGNOSE GAR. They are my favorite because of their long noses and I get to see them more often than other gar. 

FUN FACTS

• Their scientific name is Lepisosteus osseus which translates to "boney scale"
• Other names that they go by are the "needle nose gar" or the "Billy gar"
• They are typically olive-brown or deep green in color with silver-white bellies and a few larger dark spots
• They are found only in North America towards the east coast
• They are typically found in either brackish or fresh waters
• All longnose gar continue to grow throughout their lives
• The average size of longnose gar are 3-4 ft (91.44 - 121.92 cm) long, with the largest one being 6 ft (182.88 cm) long!
• Longnose gar can survive in low-oxygenated waters because their swim bladder allows them to supplement air that they gulp at the surface of the water which is then taken in through their gills
• Their eggs are green and also toxic to humans and other animals
• Longnose gar eat primarily other fish, but can also eat frogs, snakes, turtles, small invertebrates, waterfowl, and small mammals
• Longnose gar specifically have been around for about 100 million years! 
• Longnose gar live for about 15-20 years, with females living longer than males

Info I used 

a-z-animals

Maryland fish facts

national aquarium

ALSO follow these accounts on IG to catch up from past gar weeks! 

cowturtle9427 (eel pit guy)

conservation fisheries

the gar lab

"The Gar Guy" - Solomon David

ALSO I'm adding some personal pictures of longnose gar I have down below :) 

sorry for the long blog I just love these guys and wanted to show them off!