86 Memoir Sea?^s Foundation for Marine Research 



area. The description of the eggs probably was of some amphibian, as suggested by 

 Dr. Edward C. Raney (personal communication)]. 



The 49.5-mm specimen (see Description and Color above) has neither scales nor 

 lateral line developed, the pelvics and pectorals are relatively much shorter than in 

 older fish, and in the head region, the lower jaws, mandible, and interorbital dimen- 

 sion are relatively shorter while the orbit is much larger, as is common in the young 

 of many species. In coloration it is distinguished by the light median stripe from the 

 snout to the upper caudal except for its interruption by the dorsal. 



Specimens 156.5 and 170.5 mm length have the caudal appendage but lack scales 

 in the mid-dorsal region and on the midventral surface except for a partially developed 

 anal plate. The rays of the pectoral as well as those of the other fins are fully developed. 



Food and Feeding. L. spatula is credited with eating large numbers of game fishes 

 in fresh water (Gudger, 26: 120), but little has been published about its diet in brackish 

 and salt water. Raney reported that it ate ducks and water turkey (Anhinga anhingd) 

 in Cuartez, Resaca, Texas {^y : 50), and Gunter found mullet (Mugil) in the gut tract 

 of 12 out of 24 specimens (27: 24). No other food items were mentioned by these 

 authors. Those examined during the Lake Pontchartrain studies contained striped 

 mullet {Mugil cephalus) and blue crabs {Callinectes sapidus). 



Jordan (55: 313), Weed {6g: 9), and Gunter {2y. 24) have given evidence that 

 the Alligator Gar is a scavenger. 



Relation to Man. It is sold at present for human consumption in the French Market 

 in New Orleans, and its scales were used by the Indians (Gowanloch, 24.: 389-392) 

 and by the late Mr. Percy Viosca in his jewelry industry. Many unauthenticated ac- 

 counts of Gar attacks on humans have appeared in both popular and semipopular liter- 

 ature, but swimmers probably need have very little fear of them {24: 389-392; 26: 

 120, 121). With the recent development of underwater spear-fishing, all of the Gars 

 are desirable targets. Gar fishing rodeos are common annual events in Louisiana. 



Range. The Alligator Gar is a frequent invader of brackish and marine waters, and of 

 the four species it is the most tolerant to higher salinities. It occurs in fresh water in the 

 Mississippi River and lower parts of its major tributaries from the Ohio and Missouri 

 rivers southward to the Gulf of Mexico, and in brackish and salt waters along the Gulf 

 coast from Choctawhatchee Bay, Florida, to northern Mexico (26: 118 — 120; 6g: 5, 

 6; J^: 2). Gunter recorded Alligator Gars from Copano Bay, Aransas Bay, and from 

 a Gulf beach, Texas {2']: 24), and Reid reported the capture of one from East Bay, 

 Texas {60 [1956]: 302). Bailey, et al. gave catch records for the tidewater section of 

 Escambia River, Florida (5: 1 17), and specimens frequently on display at the Gulfarium 

 at Ft. Walton, Florida, are captured in Choctawhatchee Bay. 



Synonyms, with References to Occurrence in Salt Water: 



Lepisosteus spatula Lacepede, Hist. Nat. Poiss., 5, 1803: 333 (no local.); Bailey, Winn, and Smith, Proc. Acad, 

 nat. Sci. Philad., 106, 1954: 1 17 (tidewater, Florida); Reid, Texas J. Sci., 1956: 302 (salt water, Texas). 

 Lepisosteus ferox Rafinesque, Ichthyol. Ohiensis, 1820: 73 (Ohio River). 



Lepidosteus berlamlieri Girard in Pacif. R. R. Surv., Fish., 10 (4), 1858: 353 (Tamaulipas, Mexico). 

 Atractosteus lucius Dumeril, Hist. Nat. Poiss., 2, 1870: 360, 364 (Tampico, Mexico). 



