Well, this thread exploded.
1) A lot of people don't understand Alligator Gar and/or their diets, so they assume they're killing everything... not true
Quote:
According to Dan Bennett, a fisheries biologist with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, studies have proved that these gar pose no real threat to gamefish populations. "The majority of their diet consists of rough fish, like carp and shad," Bennett said. "They're opportunistic feeders, so they're going to eat what swims within reach of the bottom. Bass are stationary, which means a gar would have to hunt them down. Most of the gar we sampled actually had empty stomachs."
2) Alligator Gar have a very slow reproduction cycle
Quote:
Alligator gar are slow to mature; they usually don't spawn until they are about 10 years old. Spawning typically takes place in shallow areas of flooded vegetation when springtime water temperatures exceed 68 degrees
3) yes, they're edible and don't taste bad at all.
Nature is a funny and often misunderstood thing... people love to hate on animals they don't understand. Snakes, Coyotes, Bobcats, Gar, etc. all serve a purpose in their ecosystems, but that purpose is generally cloaked by false information that is extremely persuasive and often unchecked.
I'm not advocating that we should implement any sort of ban on Alligator Gar fishing but do find it interesting that TPWD enacted restrictions on Alligator Gar ... why would this be if they serve no beneficial value to the ecosystem and are a threat to the more popular game species?
Remember, there are also plenty of people that swear black panthers exist in Texas, rattlesnakes don't rattle because of hogs, and that any black snake near water is a water moccasin... I think it is fair to say that "Alligator gar DECIMATE the fish population", can also be added to this list.
Sources:
https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wild/species/alg/https://www.fieldandstream.com/articles/fishing/2016/08/seven-myth-busting-facts-about-alligator-gar#page-5 
