The Drilliidae are a

taxonomic 280px, Generalized scheme of taxonomy Taxonomy is a practice and science concerned with classification or categorization. Typically, there are two parts to it: the development of an underlying scheme of classes (a taxonomy) and the allocation ...

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

of small predatory

sea snail Sea snails are slow-moving marine (ocean), marine gastropod Mollusca, molluscs, usually with visible external shells, such as whelk or abalone. They share the Taxonomic classification, taxonomic class Gastropoda with slugs, which are distinguishe ...

s with high-spired shells. They are classified as marine

gastropod Gastropods (), commonly known as slugs and snails, belong to a large Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda (). This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, freshwater, and fro ...

mollusk Mollusca is a phylum of protostomic invertebrate animals, whose members are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 76,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized, making it the second-largest animal phylum after Arthropoda. The ...

s in the superfamily

Conoidea Conoidea is a Taxonomic rank, superfamily of predatory sea snails, marine (ocean), marine gastropod Mollusc, mollusks within the suborder Hypsogastropoda. This superfamily is a very large group of marine mollusks, estimated at 340 recent valid gen ...

. This family has no subfamilies. It consists of about 30 genera and approximately 500

Recent The Holocene () is the current geological epoch, beginning approximately 11,700 years ago. It follows the Last Glacial Period, which concluded with the Holocene glacial retreat. The Holocene and the preceding Pleistocene together form the Qu ...

species.

Description

The shell is claviform with a tall spire, or squatly conical to biconical. In many species, the

siphonal canal The siphonal canal is an anatomical feature of the shells of certain groups of sea snails within the clade Neogastropoda. Some sea marine gastropods have a soft tubular anterior extension of the mantle called a siphon through which water i ...

is truncated. The

aperture In optics, the aperture of an optical system (including a system consisting of a single lens) is the hole or opening that primarily limits light propagated through the system. More specifically, the entrance pupil as the front side image o ...

is U-shaped with a parietal callus pad. The sculpture of the shell shows prominent axial ribs with a polished surface. Most species have a dorsal varix (transverse elevation), except in the genera '' Cymatosyrinx'', '' Elaeocyma'' and ''

Splendrillia ''Splendrillia'' is a genus of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family (biology), family Drilliidae. Fossils from this old genus have been found in Eocene strata of Antarctica, Oligocene and Miocene strata of Australia, Miocene strat ...

''. The

protoconch A protoconch (meaning first or earliest or original shell) is an embryonic or larval shell which occurs in some classes of molluscs, e.g., the initial chamber of an ammonite or the larval shell of a gastropod. In older texts it is also called " ...

can be smooth or very carinate. The ovate operculum has a terminal nucleus. Chen-Kwoh Chang, ''Small Turrids of Taiwan'', Chapter 3, History and Taxonomy of the Clavidae; June 1, 2001
/ref> The

radula The radula (; : radulae or radulas) is an anatomical structure used by mollusks for feeding, sometimes compared to a tongue. It is a minutely toothed, chitinous ribbon, which is typically used for scraping or cutting food before the food enters ...

of the species in this family have characteristically five teeth in each row (formula: 1 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 1) with a vestigial central tooth, comb-like lateral teeth and a pair of flat-pointed, slender marginal teeth. The

foregut The foregut in humans is the anterior part of the alimentary canal, from the distal esophagus to the first half of the duodenum, at the entrance of the bile duct. Beyond the stomach, the foregut is attached to the abdominal walls by mesentery. ...

structure of the anterior alimentary system has the least derived foregut anatomy of all the families in the superfamily

. Brian Morton, The Malacofauna of Hong Kong and southern China
/ref>

Distribution

This family has wide distribution, ranging from

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

to the

Antarctic Ocean The Southern Ocean, also known as the Antarctic Ocean, comprises the southernmost waters of the world ocean, generally taken to be south of 60th parallel south, 60° S latitude and encircling Antarctica. With a size of , it is the seco ...

, found at intertidal to abyssal depths. This is reflected in the variability in larval shells and the size of the shell (from a few millimetres to 6 cm) and the characteristics of the

and the

teleoconch The gastropod shell is part of the body of many gastropods, including snails, a kind of mollusc. The shell is an exoskeleton, which protects from predators, mechanical damage, and dehydration, but also serves for muscle attachment and calcium ...

Taxonomic history

The genera in this family were originally separated from the subfamily Clavitulinae and classified by H.& A. Adams (1858) under subfamily Turritinae, because their operculum has a terminal instead of a central nucleus. In 1942, the species with a U-shaped sinus and a parietal callus pad were brought by Powell in the new subfamily Clavinae. In 1966, Morrison proposed the subfamily Drillinae (= Clavinae) for the species with a stenoglossan radula with comb-like lateral teeth. Finally, in 1993, Taylor ''et al.'' proposed the promotion of Drillinae from subfamily to the family level Drilliidae.Taylor, J.D., Kantor, Y.I& Sysoev, A.V., 1993 . ''Foregut anatomy, feeding mechanisms, relationships and classification of the Conoidea (=Toxoglossas) (Gastropoda)'' Bull. Nat. Hist. Mus. Lond .(Zool) 5(2): 125-170

Taxonomy

Genera in the family Drilliidae include:WoRMS (2010). Drilliidae. In: Bouchet, P.; Gofas, S.; Rosenberg, G. (2010) World Marine Mollusca database. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=23032 on1 September 2011 * '' Acinodrillia'' Kilburn, 1988 * ''

Agladrillia ''Agladrillia'' is a genus of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family (biology), family Drilliidae. Description A specific characteristic for this genus is that the outer lip is strongly drawn in towards the base. (Description by We ...

'' Woodring, 1928 * '' Bellaspira'' Conrad, 1868 * '' Calliclava'' McLean, 1971 * '' Cerodrillia'' Bartsch & Rehder, 1939 * '' Clathrodrillia'' Dall, 1918 * '' Clavus'' Montfort, 1810 * '' Conopleura'' Hinds, 1844 * '' Crassopleura'' Monterosato, 1884 * '' Cruziturricula'' Marks, 1951 * '' Cymatosyrinx'' Dall, 1889 * '' Decoradrillia'' Fallon, 2016 * '' Douglassia'' Bartsch, 1934 * ''

Drillia ''Drillia'' is a genus of small sea snails, marine (ocean), marine gastropod mollusks in the family (biology), family Drilliidae. General characteristics The shell is turriculated, with an elevated Spire (mollusc), spire, longitudinal ribs, and ...

'' Gray, 1838 * '' Elaeocyma'' Dall, 1918 * '' Eumetadrillia'' Woodring, 1928 * ''

Fenimorea ''Fenimorea'' is a genus of carnivorous sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family (biology), family Drilliidae. Description (Original description) The shell is large. The Whorl (mollusc), whorls of the protoconch are well rounded and s ...

'' Bartsch, 1934 * '' Fusiturricula'' Woodring, 1928 * '' Globidrillia'' Woodring, 1928 * '' Hauturua'' Powell, 1942 * '' Imaclava'' Bartsch, 1944 * ''

Iredalea ''Iredalea'' is a small genus of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family (biology), family Drilliidae. This genus was named in 1915 by Walter Oliver after Tom Iredale (1880–1972), an English-born naturalist who lived mainly in Aust ...

'' Oliver, 1915 * ''

Kylix In the pottery of ancient Greece, a kylix ( , ; ; also spelled ''cylix''; : kylikes , ) is the most common type of cup in the period, usually associated with the drinking of wine. The cup often consists of a rounded base and a thin stem under ...

'' Dall, 1919 * '' Leptadrillia'' Woodring, 1928 * ''

Lissodrillia ''Lissodrillia'' is a genus of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family (biology), family Drilliidae.[Bouchet, P. (2016). Lissodrillia Bartsch & Rehder, 1939. In: MolluscaBase (2015). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species ...

'' Bartsch & Rehder, 1943 * ''Neodrillia'' Bartsch, 1943 * ''Orrmaesia'' Kilburn, 1988 * ''Paracuneus'' Laseron, 1954 * ''Plagiostropha'' Melvill, 1927 * † ''Pleurofusia'' de Gregorio, 1890 * '' Sedilia (gastropod), Sedilia'' Fargo, 1953 * '' Spirotropis'' Sars, 1878 * ''

'' Hedley, 1922 * '' Stenodrillia'' Korobkov, 1955 * '' Syntomodrillia'' Hedley, 1922 * ''

Wairarapa The Wairarapa (; ), a geographical region of New Zealand, lies in the south-eastern corner of the North Island, east of metropolitan Wellington and south-west of the Hawke's Bay Region. It is lightly populated, having several rural service t ...

'' Vella, 1954 ;Genera brought into synonymy * '' Brephodrillia'' Pilsbry & Lowe, 1932: synonym of ''

'' * '' Clavicantha'' Swainson, 1840: synonym of '' Clavus'' Montfort, 1810 * '' Eldridgea'' Bartsch, 1934: synonym of '' Clavus'' Montfort, 1810 * '' Fusisyrinx'' Bartsch, 1934: synonym of '' Fusiturricula'' Woodring, 1928 * '' Tylotia'' Melvill, 1917: synonym of '' Clavus'' Montfort, 1810 * '' Tylotiella'' Habe, 1958: synonym of '' Clavus'' Montfort, 1810 ;Genera moved to other families * '' Austroclavus'' (unassigned to a family within Conoidea) * ''

Brachytoma ''Brachytoma'' is a genus of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family (biology), family Pseudomelatomidae. R.N. Kilburn proposed in 1989 the name ''Brachytoma'' to be rejected, since the type species ''Pleurotoma strombiformis'' G. B ...

'' moved to the family

Pseudomelatomidae Pseudomelatomidae is a family (biology), family of predatory sea snails, marine gastropods included in the superfamily Conoidea (previously Conacea) and part of the Neogastropoda (Taxonomy of the Gastropoda (Bouchet & Rocroi, 2005), Bouchet & Ro ...

* '' Sediliopsis'' Petuch, 1988: moved to the family

References

The Taxonomicon

External links

*
WMSDB - Worldwide Mollusc Species Data Base: family Drilliidae
{{Taxonbar, from=Q3170724 Conoidea