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Atractosteus spatula in Mexico
Alligator gar

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Atractosteus spatula   (Lacepède, 1803)
Family:	Lepisosteidae (Gars)			picture (Atspa_u3.jpg) by Jean-Francois Helias / Fishing Adventures Thailand
Order:	Lepisosteiformes  (gars)
Class:	Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes)
FishBase name:	Alligator gar
Max. size:	305 cm OT (male/unsexed; Ref. 3221); max. published weight: 137.0 kg (Ref. 58490)
Environment:	demersal ; depth range - 0 m
Climate:	subtropical; 44°N - 20°N
Global Importance:	fisheries: minor commercial; aquarium: public aquariums
Resilience:	Very low, minimum population doubling time more than 14 years (Preliminary K or Fecundity.)
Distribution:	North America: ranges from Mississippi River basin from southwestern Ohio and southern Illinois in USA south to Gulf of Mexico; Gulf of Mexico Coastal Plain from Enconfina River in Florida, USA to Veracruz, Mexico.
Diagnosis:	Large size and broad, short snout. Light dorsal stripe. Dark olivaceous brown above and white to yellowish beneath. Dark brown blotches on all fins (Ref. 37032).
Biology:	Adults inhabit sluggish pools and backwaters of large rivers, swamps, bayous, and lakes. Rarely enter brackish and marine waters (Ref. 5723). Feed on blue crabs, turtles, waterfowl or other birds and small mammals (Ref. 10294). Giant of the gars (Ref. 5723). Marketed fresh (Ref. 37032)
Threatened:	Not Evaluated, see IUCN Red List  , (Ref. 36508)
Dangerous:	harmless
Coordinator:	Wiley, Ed
Main Ref:	Etnier, D.A. and W.C. Starnes. 1993. (Ref. 10294)
Update | Add

Mexico country information
Common names:	Catán, Catán, Pejelagarto		Ref:  Anonymous, 1994
Status:	native		Ref:  Page, L.M. and B.M. Burr, 1991
Salinity:	freshwater, brackish
Uses:	no uses
Comments:	Status of threat: vulnerable. Criteria: 1,2 (http://fisc.er.usgs.gov/afs/) (Ref. 81264).
Country Information:	www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/mx.html
Occurrences:	Occurrences    Point map
Main Ref:	Anonymous, 1994
Update

More information:	Countries FAO areas Occurrences Introductions Ecosystem Ecology Diet Food items Food consumption Ration Predators Ciguatera Fish loss Common names Synonyms Pictures Sounds Reproduction Maturity Spawning Eggs Egg dev. Larvae Larval dynamics References Growth L-W relationship L-L relationship Length frequencies Recruitment Max. age & size Metabolism Morphology Morphometrics Gill area Brains Vision Collaborators Genetics Allele frequencies Heritability Strains Aquaculture Aquaculture profile Diseases Ecotoxicology Processing Speed Swim. type Stamps
	Note: No data are available if label is black .
Tools:	Biogeographic modelling | E-book | Field guide | Identification keys | Length-frequency Wizard | Life-history tool | Point map |
Internet sources:	Alien/Invasive species database | BiOSC Point Data | CISTI | Google | GOBASE | GenBank ( genome, nucleotide ) | PubMed | Recipes | Scirus | Public aquariums | Tree of Life | Zoological Record
	Note: use the Back button of your browser to return to FishBase.
	Modified:  Torres, Armi G.	Entered:  Agustin, Liza Q.

	Ref.:				Glossary
		(e.g. 9948)				(e.g. cephalopods)
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Page created by: Eli, 20.10.03, last modified by Eli, 26.06.07