Animal-World > Freshwater Fish > Various True Bony Fishes > Needle Nose Gar

Needle Nose Gar Needlefish ~ Freshwater Garfish ~ Silver Needlefish

Family: Belonidae

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Xenentodon cancilaPhoto © Animal-World: Courtesy David Brough

    The surface dwelling Needle Nose Gar resembles a twig floating in the water, and so sometimes is called a Stickfish!

     This Needle Nose Gar, also called the Freshwater Garfish or Silver Needlefish, is not a gar at all but is actually one of the few freshwater members of the needlefish family. The common name of gar is used because there are similarities between this fish and the true gars. True gars are illegal to keep in many areas so this fish makes a good, legal substitute.

     Needlefish are schooling fish so they do best in groups of 3 or more. Its mouth full of rows of sharp teeth might make you think that this is an aggressive fish, but the Needle Nose Gar really isn't. Those teeth are used strictly to hold their live meals. It will grab its prey whole in its mouth, then adeptly maneuver it about to be swallowed. Tank mates should be large enough so they cannot be swallowed by a needlefish and this is larger than you may think. They are able to eat prey that is almost twice as thick as their bodies are.

For more Information on keeping this fish see:
Guide to a Happy, Healthy Freshwater Aquarium

Distribution:      The Needle Nose Gar, one of the Needlefish species also called the Freshwater Garfish, was described by Hamilton in 1822. They are very common throughout much of Southeast Asia; Sri Lanka and India eastward to the Mekong.

Status:      The species is not listed on the IUCN Red List.

Description:      The Needle Nose Gar is a long thin fish that swims close to the surface and resembles a stick, so is sometimes referred to as a Stickfish. It mouth is a very long, narrow, and full of sharp teeth. The body is a silvery green along the top becoming lighter towards its underside, and there is a dark horizontal band running along its flanks.

Size - Weight:      This fish can grow up to 16 inches (40 cm).

Care and feeding:      The Needle Nose Gars are carnivores, a predator that in the wild mainly eats crustaceans. In the aquarium they prefer meals of live shrimp, fish, crickets or even tadpoles. Some have been trained to eat frozen/defrosted shrimp or fish.
    Needle Nose Gar are surface dwellers so surface area in their aquarium is more important than tank capacity. A 50 gallon tank is recommended but a shorter tank with the same surface dimensions will work okay.

Water Region: Top, Middle, Bottom:      Needlefish swim at or near the surface of the water.

Acceptable Water Conditions:      Temp: 71 - 82 ° F (22 - 28 ° C)
     Ph: 7.0 to 7.5
     Hardness: 20 ° dGH

Social Behaviors:      Needle Nose Gars are not aggressive but they are greedy predators that have been known to bite first, and then decide if what they bit was food. There are stories of mistaken identity where their keeper put their hand into the tank too quickly and was bitten because the fish thought it was feeding time. They do best in schools of three or more, and if other tank mates are too large to be swallowed by the needlefish, it should be safe.

Sexual Differences:      The dorsal and anal fins of the males will usually have a black edge.

Breeding/Reproduction:      The Needle Nose Gar has been bred in captivity. They spawn in the morning, with the female depositing a small number of eggs on plants. The eggs adhere to the plants with a sticky thread. They hatch in 10 days with the fry being about 12 mm and ready to feed on small live foods.
     This is what the good folks at Mongabay.com have to say about a breeding experience with this fish: The planted tank used was about 70 gallons, the water had a pH of about 6.5, dH was 12-15 and the temperature ranged from 77 to 81 F. They spawn at dawn and each day for several days they will attach 5 to 15 eggs to the plants. The eggs hatch in about 10 days and can be raised on newly hatched brine shrimp and newborn livebearer.  

Availability:      The Needle Nose Gars are commonly available.

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Latest Comments
Great fish that stays on top and minds its own business. I had 2 but passed away, but not hard to keep at all. Sean 2009-07-30
If feeders are stored in the tank with Gars will they eat when they are hungry or get use to the feeders and go with out food? I have been puting shrimp plets in the tank because I'm afarid that they are not eating the feeders... Flo 2009-02-27
How big do needlenose get? noah 2009-02-16
He had a blood blister on his bottom lip, it looked like a cluster of grapes. Today his blister fell off but it took half of his bottom lip off and then it died. What kind of illness was that? Kris 2008-12-29

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