Abstract
ABSTRACT Gars (Lepisosteidae, Actinopterygii) are reported from Madagascar for the first time, from exposures of the Upper Cretaceous (?Campanian) Maevarano Formation in the Mahajanga Basin, northwestern Madagascar. The material includes relatively common isolated scales, and vertebral centra, teeth, fin rays, and dermal cranial elements, all assigned to Lepisosteus sp. This new record from Madagascar adds to previously documented Cretaceous Gondwanan gar occurrences in India, Africa, and South America, as well as in Laurasia. The overall pattern points to a Pangean distribution in the Cretaceous and a Jurassic or earlier origin for the gar clade. The extant endemic fishes of Madagascar are not phylogenetically close to gars or to other Late Cretaceous fishes known from the island, suggesting that the ichthyofauna now there likely evolved from post-Mesozoic colonizers.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
