The alligator gar (Atractosteus spatula) is an euryhaline ray-finned fish closely related to the bowfins. It is the largest species in the gar family (Lepisosteidae), and is among the largest freshwater fish in North America. Alligator gars are relatively passive, seemingly sluggish solitary fish, but voracious ambush predators. They are opportunistic night predators and are primarily piscivores, but they also ambush and eat water fowl, turtles, and small mammals that may be floating on the surface.
