Alligator gar and Tropical gar

by Ghaziy 7B

One fish looks like a smashed-up alligator and the other is a fish that looks like a crocodile but about the size of a barracuda. Both of their appearances could be mistaken as a swordfish. With their body being bony as a dinosaur fossil. These bony fish hunt, kill, and eat fish, turtles, birds, and mammals and bear a robust resemblance to gars that lived 75 million years ago in the past. This essay will dig in through the taxonomy, physical features, and behavior of the Alligator gar and Tropical gar, in order to identify the similarities and differences between these two animals.

Despite having differences in appearance, Alligator gar and Tropical gar actually come from the same families. These two animals come from the same kingdom, Animalia. They share the same phylum, Chordata. With the same class, Actinopterygii, and the same order, Lepisosteiformes. These two animals come from the family Lepisosteidae. The genus of both animals is Atractosteus. However, they begin to separate once the species names are involved. The Alligator gar's species name is Atractosteus spatula. While the Tropical gar's species name is Atractosteus tropicus.

While Alligator and Tropical gar are similar in terms of taxonomy, their similarities don't end there. With the two animals, physical features are different. The Alligator gar has a smaller

body than the Tropical gar, but the Alligator gar has a body longer than an average pillow than the Tropical fish. For their similarities, the Alligator gar and Tropical gar are both carnivores. They both have the same scales and both have fins to help them swim underwater. The two pectoral fins are located right by the head, the pelvic fins are located halfway down the body, and the dorsal and anal fins are located right next to the tail. Lastly, the differences between these animals can also be seen in their behavior. Both Alligator gar and Tropical gar reproductive behavior and development are in great depth. From the little we do understand, we can say that the breeding season occurs between May and July. The female does not reproduce every year. Instead, she tends to reproduce when water overruns the banks and creates floodplains. This allows her to lay thousands of dark green or red eggs on the rocks and vegetation near the banks. But the differences in reproductive behavior are the Alligator gar’s unborn gars have a very useful defense mechanism, their eggs are toxic to ingest. The social behavior of both animals are not social fish and is best kept alone, the only case in which they show any social behavior occurs during mating.

In conclusion, despite Alligator gar and Tropical gar being different, they have almost had the same taxonomy, physical features, and behavior. While their species names are different they are in the same family and species. The Alligator gar's species name is Atractosteus spatula. While the Tropical gar's species name is Atractosteus tropicus. These two animals come from the family Lepisosteidae. They both have the same scales and both have fins to help them swim underwater. The two pectoral fins are located right by the head, the pelvic fins are located halfway down the body, and the dorsal and anal fins are located right next to the tail. we can say that the breeding season occurs between May and July. The female does not reproduce every year. Instead, she tends to reproduce when water overruns the banks and creates floodplains. With all these mentioned, it’s best to say that Alligator gar and Tropical gar are in fact similar.

Works Cited AZ Animals. (2021, February 12). Alligator gar. AZ Animals. https://a-z-animals.com/animals/alligator-gar/ Seriouslyfish. (n.d.). Atractosteus tropicus – Tropical Gar — Seriously Fish. Seriouslyfish. Retrieved October 26, 2021, from https://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/atractosteus-tropicus/