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Structured Inquiry Search — preview

• Home
• Kingdom Animalia
• Phylum Chordata
• Subphylum Vertebrata
• Superclass Gnathostomata
• Class Actinopterygii
• Order Lepisosteiformes
• Family Lepisosteidae

• Information
• Pictures
• Classification

By Tanya Dewey

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Subphylum: Vertebrata

Class: Actinopterygii

Order: Lepisosteiformes

Family: Lepisosteidae

Members of this Family

The gar family is made up of 7 species found in eastern North America and Central America, from Quebec to Costa Rica. They are also found on Cuba. They are long, tubular-shaped fish with very long jaws armed with needle sharp teeth. They are usually found in shallow, weedy areas. They do well in water that is low in oxygen content because they can gulp atmospheric air into their vascularized swim bladders. They can get very large, up to 3 meters in the alligator gar of the southeastern United States. Gars are slow-moving fish but are also voracious predators, grabbing fish and crustaceans in their sharp teeth.

For More Information

Find Lepisosteidae information at

• Encyclopedia of Life

Contributors

Tanya Dewey (author), Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology.

To cite this page: Dewey, T. . "Lepisosteidae" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed February 13, 2012 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Lepisosteidae.html

Disclaimer: The Animal Diversity Web is an educational resource written largely by and for college students. ADW doesn't cover all species in the world, nor does it include all the latest scientific information about organisms we describe. Though we edit our accounts for accuracy, we cannot guarantee all information in those accounts. While ADW staff and contributors provide references to books and websites that we believe are reputable, we cannot necessarily endorse the contents of references beyond our control.

Sponsored in part by the Interagency Education Research Initiative,
the Homeland Foundation and the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology.
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grants DUE-0633095 and DRL-0628151.
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