Prehistoric gars before the Gator Gars?

[jpcampbell123]

Has there ever been any gars that was larger than the gator gars in size?

 

[Oddball]

Going by specimens I've found, seen, and read about, it seems that the present day alligator gar is the largest species of gar known to have existed.

 

[mr.bigglesworth]

I looked on Wikipedia, there aren't any. But just for fun, I thought id direct you to a nice site with info on extinct and non-extinct gars. If you scroll down to the bottom it also lists hybrid gars.
http://lepisosteidae.net/index_files/Page1134.htm

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[Polypterus]

Going by specimens I've found, seen, and read about, it seems that the present day alligator gar is the largest species of gar known to have existed.

Some fossil remnants of teeth and scales though have placed a couple equal to A. spatula. (Need to check Grande book to be for sure which species...)

For reference: Grande, L. 2010. An empirical synthetic pattern study of gars (Lepisosteiformes) and closely related species, based mostly on skeletal anatomy. The resurrection of holostei. American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists Special Publication 6: i-x, 1-871; supplementary issue of Copeia 10: 2a.

 

[Oddball]

Here's my Atractosteus strausi from Messel, Germany. He's from the eocene (about 50 million years ago). These grew to roughly 2ft.

 

[jpcampbell123]

Cool how did you end up with that fossil of an ancient gar?

 

[Wiggles92]

Cool how did you end up with that fossil of an ancient gar?

I don't know where Oddball got his, but I do know that they pop up for sale from time to time on Fossilmall.com and other places.

Also, they are pretty rare and typically have a price to match. Based on what I've come across recently, a small one will typically cost more than a living Cuban gar or two, and some very large ones cost as much as a car. Of course then, fossil gar scales can be obtained for relatively low prices.

 

[aclockworkorange]

I do know oddball collects/studies fossils. And rocks?


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[Wiggles92]

Cool how did you end up with that fossil of an ancient gar?

Also, you might have some luck finding fossilized gar scales as they're supposed to be a pretty common fossil in some southern states.