SALUDA, S.C.
Next time you are floating on the Broad River, Saluda River, or Congaree River, keep your eyes peeled for a rare black longnose gar. Experts say they are more common in the Midlands rivers than one might think.
The Brandt family, from Prosperity, and the Williams family, from Little Mountain, were out on the water Sunday for a day of fishing and to hang out on the sandbars just north of the town of Saluda. Usually, Henry Alex Brandt said, he only catches catfish in this area.
“I’ve never really caught anything decent,” he said. But that day was different. A fishing rod on one of the Brandt boats started bouncing. The entire family jumped in once they saw the rod bouncing, and a black-log like figure in the water—Henry, his son Henry, his brother David Brandt, and Chandlor Williams.
According to information from the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, longnose gar are native to South Carolina. What makes this one black, however, is the melanin. The FWC Fish and Wildlife Research Institute explains, “melanism is an abnormal extent of dark coloration in the skin, scales, fur, or feathers of animals and is characterized by excessive deposits of melanin. It’s relatively rare in animals and is not often seen by biologists.”
Jason Bettinger, a fisheries biologist for DNR in the Midlands area, said the lower Broad, upper Congaree, and lower Saluda have a high frequency of melanism in longnose gar compared to other areas he’s worked. “I would say for that area, we are looking at percentages greater than 1 percent,” he said. “If you float the lower Broad on a clearwater day and are looking, you will likely see a melanistic gar.”
On average, these fish are about two and a half to three feet long. That’s how long the Brandt family said their catch was. Gars also have unique teeth, which make them a bit frightening to see.
“We caught her, we admired her, and we let her go. She swam on her way,” said Samantha Brandt, Henry Alex Brandt’s wife.
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