Alligator Gar
Alligator Gar (Atractosteus spatula) is a freshwater and saltwater species. The first thing to check: a short, broad, blunt snout shaped like an alligator's, much wider than a longnose gar's beak. The look-alike to rule out is Longnose Gar: the longnose has a narrow beak twice the head length and a single row of upper teeth.
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| Scientific name | Atractosteus spatula |
|---|---|
| Water | Freshwater and saltwater |
| Group | Gar |
| Temperature | Active in warm water from the 70s into the 90s °F; largely dormant below about 55 °F. |
How to identify an Alligator Gar
- A short, broad, blunt snout shaped like an alligator's, much wider than a longnose gar's beak.
- Two rows of large teeth in the upper jaw — the only North American gar with a second row.
- Massive size and heavy diamond-shaped armoured scales; adults commonly exceed six feet.
If you would rather not work through a key on a wet deck, photograph the fish and let the app name it — you get the common and the scientific name back, and the record is filed before you release.
Fish it is mistaken for
| Species | How to tell them apart |
|---|---|
| Longnose Gar | The longnose has a narrow beak twice the head length and a single row of upper teeth. |
| Spotted Gar | Spotted gar are much smaller with a longer snout and heavy dark spotting over the head and body. |
Read the full entry for Longnose Gar and Spotted Gar.
Where it lives
Large rivers, oxbows, bayous and coastal estuaries of the lower Mississippi valley and the Gulf states, from Texas to Florida. Tolerates brackish water and is regularly caught in salt.
Temperature
Active in warm water from the 70s into the 90s °F; largely dormant below about 55 °F.
The conditions that matter
Alligator gar are strongly tied to river stage — spawning is triggered by spring flooding onto vegetated floodplain, and fish move with rising and falling water. In coastal reaches, salinity tolerance means they range further into brackish water than most anglers expect.
Global Fishing League records 18 weather and water readings against every catch automatically — tide stage, barometric pressure, water temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, chlorophyll, swell, current, moon phase and more, taken at your GPS position at the moment you log the fish. Over a season that turns a hunch about alligator gar into a pattern you can read.
See every reading recorded with a catch, or the guides to what each reading means.
Size limits, bag limits and seasons
Size limits, bag limits, slot limits and seasons are set by your state wildlife agency — and for many offshore and migratory species by federal regulators — and on many waters they differ from the statewide rule. They also change between seasons. Check the current regulations for the exact water you are fishing before you keep a fish — we do not republish limits here, because a number that is a season out of date is worse than no number.
What the app does do is make your side of it accurate: every catch carries a length measured from the photograph, a GPS position and a timestamp, exportable if you ever need to show your work for a tournament or a record claim. It is also what a Global Fishing League entry is built from — a record that verifies itself, without publishing where you caught the fish.