What lures work for Longnose Gar?

Frayed nylon rope lure: No hook needed: cast near a surfaced fish and retrieve with a pumping action a few feet under the surface. Topwater swimbait, a soft plastic: Cast to gar cruising or basking near the surface in shallow, weedy water; caught New York's 2024 record longnose gar. Wire-loop snare: Worked toward a surfaced fish and pulled snug around its snout on the take, a second hookless method Indiana DNR names.

What bait works for Longnose Gar?

Live baitfish (shiners, small perch): Fished under a float or on bottom near basking fish on a wire leader; standard hooksets often fail against the gar's bony jaw. Cut fish bait: Cut fish bait suspended near cover in the slow pools and backwaters gar use to ambush prey.

Where do Longnose Gar hold?

Spring: Spawns over gravel shallows along windswept shorelines and rocky points as water nears 68 F. Summer: Congregates in schools in reservoirs and deep river pools; can be seen breaking the surface to gulp air. Fall: Continues the mid-summer surface-gulping ('porpoising') pattern into early fall, per Missouri's Department of Conservation.

How big do Longnose Gar get?

The New York record is 15 lbs. 14 oz. from Butterfield Lake, Jefferson Co. in 2024. The Wisconsin record is 21 lbs. 4 oz. from Wisconsin River, Richland County in 1990.

Longnose Gar fishing

Longnose Gar fishing uses a Frayed nylon rope lure or a Live baitfish (shiners, small perch) with a medium-heavy spinning or baitcasting rod, paired with a wire or heavy monofilament leader for the gar's sharp teeth and bony jaw, at day. Longnose gar do not appear in any state's stocking data this site tracks.

Lepisosteus osseus. Extremely long, slender snout, its width at the narrowest point going about 15 to 20 times into its length.

By Nicolas Sartor · Last verified September 23, 2026

Common questions

What lures work for Longnose Gar?: Frayed nylon rope lure: No hook needed: cast near a surfaced fish and retrieve with a pumping action a few feet under the surface. Topwater swimbait, a soft plastic: Cast to gar cruising or basking near the surface in shallow, weedy water; caught New York's 2024 record longnose gar. Wire-loop snare: Worked toward a surfaced fish and pulled snug around its snout on the take, a second hookless method Indiana DNR names.
What bait works for Longnose Gar?: Live baitfish (shiners, small perch): Fished under a float or on bottom near basking fish on a wire leader; standard hooksets often fail against the gar's bony jaw. Cut fish bait: Cut fish bait suspended near cover in the slow pools and backwaters gar use to ambush prey.
Where do Longnose Gar hold?: Spring: Spawns over gravel shallows along windswept shorelines and rocky points as water nears 68 F. Summer: Congregates in schools in reservoirs and deep river pools; can be seen breaking the surface to gulp air. Fall: Continues the mid-summer surface-gulping ('porpoising') pattern into early fall, per Missouri's Department of Conservation.
How big do Longnose Gar get?: The New York record is 15 lbs. 14 oz. from Butterfield Lake, Jefferson Co. in 2024. The Wisconsin record is 21 lbs. 4 oz. from Wisconsin River, Richland County in 1990.

Identification

Extremely long, slender snout, its width at the narrowest point going about 15 to 20 times into its length.
Its shorter-snouted look-alikes, shortnose and spotted gar, share its waters; spotted gar also has spots on its head.
Elongated, cylindrical body armored in hard, diamond-shaped, non-overlapping ganoid scales.
Olive-brown above fading to white on the belly, with dark round spots on the tail and rear fins.
Most adults run 2 to 4 feet long; Indiana DNR records fish reaching about 6.5 feet.

Sources: mdc.mo.gov, accessed September 23, 2026 , in.gov, accessed September 23, 2026 , wvdnr.gov, accessed September 23, 2026

Depth by season

Season	Depth	Note
Spring	–	Spawns over gravel shallows along windswept shorelines and rocky points as water nears 68 F.
Summer	–	Congregates in schools in reservoirs and deep river pools; can be seen breaking the surface to gulp air.
Fall	–	Continues the mid-summer surface-gulping ('porpoising') pattern into early fall, per Missouri's Department of Conservation.
Winter	–	–

Sources: in.gov, accessed September 23, 2026 , mdc.mo.gov, accessed September 23, 2026

Active times

Sources: mdc.mo.gov, accessed September 23, 2026

Top lures

Frayed nylon rope lure (other ): No hook needed: cast near a surfaced fish and retrieve with a pumping action a few feet under the surface.
Topwater swimbait (soft plastic ): Cast to gar cruising or basking near the surface in shallow, weedy water; caught New York's 2024 record longnose gar.
Wire-loop snare (other ): Worked toward a surfaced fish and pulled snug around its snout on the take, a second hookless method Indiana DNR names.

Sources: mdc.mo.gov, accessed September 23, 2026 , in.gov, accessed September 23, 2026 , wvdnr.gov, accessed September 23, 2026 , dec.ny.gov, accessed September 23, 2026

Top baits

Live baitfish (shiners, small perch): Fished under a float or on bottom near basking fish on a wire leader; standard hooksets often fail against the gar's bony jaw.
Cut fish bait: Cut fish bait suspended near cover in the slow pools and backwaters gar use to ambush prey.

Sources: mdc.mo.gov, accessed September 23, 2026 , in.gov, accessed September 23, 2026

Line & tackle

Rod power: Medium-heavy spinning or baitcasting rod, paired with a wire or heavy monofilament leader for the gar's sharp teeth and bony jaw

Stocked behavior

Longnose gar do not appear in any state's stocking data this site tracks. Indiana's Division of Fish and Wildlife describes gar as an ancient, native fish lineage dating back to the Cretaceous period that is "not stocked or managed by the state," reproducing on its own each spring.

Sources: in.gov, accessed September 23, 2026

Common mistakes

Relying on a standard hook and treble-hook lures; a gar's bony jaw rarely holds a hook, which is why the hookless rope lure exists.
Setting the hook hard on a rope lure strike; steady pressure lets the nylon fibers tangle in the gar's teeth instead.
Skipping a wire or heavy leader; a gar's rows of needle-like teeth cut through light monofilament easily.

Sources: mdc.mo.gov, accessed September 23, 2026 , mdc.mo.gov, accessed September 23, 2026

State records

State	Weight	Angler	Water	Year
New York	15 lbs. 14 oz.	Chuck Zimmerman	Butterfield Lake, Jefferson Co.	2024
Wisconsin	21 lbs. 4 oz.	–	Wisconsin River, Richland County	1990

Sources: New York's official record page , Wisconsin's official record page .

Where it's stocked

No stocking events recorded for Longnose Gar yet.