Gars are the ultimate living fossils, having changed at an incredibly slow pace since their ancestors emerged during the dinosaur age 150 million years ago, scientists have revealed. This leisurely rate of change means these prehistoric fish have the slowest rate of molecular evolution among all jawed vertebrates.
The gar (family Lepisosteidae) lineage stretches across millennia, with the most anatomically modern species occurring in the fossil record during the late Jurassic period (163.5 million to 145 million years ago). Seven living species inhabit the lakes and rivers of North and South America, while one species occasionally ventures into marine environments as well.
