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Longnose Gar taken last week in Leon County. photo by Carly Torno Some like to hunt, some like to fish. Bowfishing is a growing sport nationwide and a great way to enjoy hunting and fishing at the same time. Texas laws do not permit the taking of most game fish with archery tackle. That means that fishing with a weapon is limited to the non-game species like Gar and Carp.

One doesn't have to leave Leon County to find world class Gar fishing. Alligator Gar are plentiful in the Navasota and Trinity River and all of the major creeks hold good numbers of Spotted and Longnose Gar fish. They can be taken from a boat or from the banks of most large creeks. Occasionally Gar will get trapped in potholes and oxbows that fill with creek and river water during floods.

Gar are a truly prehistoric type of fish. Their bodies are armored with very tough interlocking scaled that form a shell comparable to that of an Armadillo. Alligator Gar have an air bladder that helps them stay suspended in the water much like a Tarpon. If Gar are present in a water body they can be seen surfacing to gulp air frequently. All Gar sport a very long mouth full of nasty teeth. They are formidable predators that can wreak havoc on game fish populations if their numbers are not kept in check.

Texas Parks and Wildlife just announced a bag limit on Alligator Gar that takes effect August 1, 2009. Anglers using bow and arrow will only be allowed one Alligator Gar per day after that time. Other Gar fish species will remain unregulated as a game fish for now.

Alligator Gar can grow to enormous size in the rivers. In 2001, Marty McClellan took the state record Alligator Gar from the Trinity River using a bowfishing rig. The monster fish weighed 290 pounds and measured 96 inches long.

It takes Gar a long time to reach that size. Alligator Gar females do not reach sexual maturity until 12 years of age. That may be one reason the state has decided to limit the amount of Gar that can be taken with bowfishing tackle.

Common Carp, Grass Carp, Grinnell and Buffalo can be legally taken with archery gear as the State does not classify them as game fish.

Any functioning old bow can be turned into a bowfishing rig. Many chose to use old compound or recurve bows with special reels strapped to the side. A few bow manufacturers are producing bows specifically designed and set up for bowfishing.

Bowfishing is a yearround opportunity that doesn't have to cost sportsmen a lot of money to get into. The best fishing the state has to offer is in our public waters.