A fish (family Lepisosteidae) with a long, cigar-shaped body heavily armoured with strong scales, a long jaw bearing sharp teeth, and the dorsal and anal fins close to the tail. Gars are large, generally slow-moving, and occur in shallow, fresh, brackish, or occasionally marine water. There are two genera, Atractosteus with three species and Lepisosteus with four species, found in North America from Quebec to Costa Rica.