In 1994, the Alligator Gar was delisted and considered to be extirpated. From 1977 to 1994, the species was listed as a state-threatened fish under the Illinois Threatened and Endangered Species Act. The Alligator Gar was not regulated or protected in Illinois prior to 1977. While no single factor can be identified as the definitive cause for the decline, it is likely that a combination of these factors over time resulted in the extirpation of the Alligator Gar from Illinois. Declines have been attributed to several factors, most notably over-exploitation and loss of important backwater spawning habitats from the construction of levees and lock-and-dams beginning in the early 1900s. IDNR Fish Species Management Plan for Alligator Gar ( Atractosteus spatula) in Illinois (Download PDF)Īlligator Gar ( Atractosteus spatula) populations have been declining within their historic range for at least the past 50 years and are considered to be extirpated from much of the northern reaches (Nature Serve, 2015).
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