Garpike (Lepisosteus osseus)

Garpike are what biologists refer to as "living fossils". The gars in general show an origin in the fossil record more than 180 million years ago. The genus Lepisosteus has a hundred million year history in its own right. The animal you see pictured here would have been quite familiar to Tyrannosaurus rex and the other denizens of Crichton's excellent novel, Jurassic Park (which would better have been named Cretaceous Park, but who's to quibble?). They survived the giant asteroid crash that sent the dinosaurs to extinction, and went right on, unchanged in both appearance and habit. They have existed for a thousand times as long as have we humans on this planet.

Garpike.gifPhotoby Bill Long

Garpike live in North America, occupying the eastern half of the United states and Canada. There are less than a dozen living species. The animal in the photo is about 6 inches long, living in my aquarium at home. Its mother was 41 inches long, and they grow to six feet!

Learn more about garpike research at McDaniel.

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