Welcome to the new Alligator Gar Technical Committee Webpage. This site is currently under construction after migrating from its previous location. Updates will be coming soon. If you have information on Alligator Gars that you’d like shared on this site, please contact Solomon R. David at solomonrdavid@gmail.com.

 

The alligator gar is the largest of four species of gar found in Arkansas. The largest one on record from Arkansas was taken from the White River and weighed 240 lbs. This species, the largest in the Mississippi River Valley, once had a range that spread across most large river systems and tributaries from the Gulf of Mexico states upstream into the Ohio River Valley. However, recent findings suggest a substantial decline in the population and range. In Arkansas, this species was once highly prolific and sought after as a sport fish in the White River, but recent surveys suggest populations are far below historic levels and could be declining further. In some states they are believed to have been extirpated. The Arkansas Field Office, in cooperation with the University of Central Arkansas (UCA) and the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, is assessing the status of alligator gar in Arkansas and working cooperatively with the members of the multi-state Alligator Gar Technical Committee (AGTC) under the Southern Division of the American Fisheries Society to determine their status range wide and to promote their conservation, research, and management.