Tropical gar
| Tropical gar | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Lepisosteiformes |
| Family: | Lepisosteidae |
| Genus: | Atractosteus |
| Species: | A. tropicus |
| Binomial name | |
| Atractosteus tropicus T. N. Gill, 1863 | |
The tropical gar (Atractosteus tropicus) is a fish found in freshwaters from southern Mexico to Costa Rica, reported to reach lengths of up to 1.25 m in the wild (albeit often much smaller in captivity). The heaviest individual known weighed 2.89 kg (6.4 lb). The tropical gar looks very similar to the longnose gar in color and markings, but can be distinguished by its shorter, broader snout. The tropical gar's diet consists mainly of cichlids and other fish.
References
- "Atractosteus tropicus". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 24 January 2006.
- Froese, Rainer and Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2005). "Atractosteus tropicus" in FishBase. 10 2005 version.
Spitzer, Mark (2015). Return of the Gar. U of North Texas Press. ISBN 9781574415995
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