Turritellidae
| Turritellidae | |
|---|---|
 |
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| A shell of a Turritella species | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| (unranked): |
clade Caenogastropoda clade Sorbeoconcha |
| Superfamily: | Cerithioidea |
| Family: |
Turritellidae Lovén, 1847 |
| Diversity | |
| 21 extant genera 125 extant species |
|
| Synonyms | |
|
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clade Sorbeoconcha
125 extant species
Turritellidae, common name the "tower shells" or "tower snails", is a taxonomic family of small to medium-sized sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the clade Sorbeoconcha.
These snails are filter feeders. This method of feeding is somewhat unusual among gastropod mollusks, but is very common in bivalves.
The shells of turritellid species have whorls that are more convex and an aperture which is more circular than it is in the auger shells which are similarly high-spired. The columella is curved and the thin operculum is horny.
These snails burrow into mud or sand. The foot is relatively small.
The following five subfamilies were recognized in the taxonomy of Bouchet & Rocroi (2005):
Genera within the family Turritellidae include:
...
Wikipedia