Xenophoridae

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Xenophoridae
XenophoridSideView.jpg
Xenophora pallidula , a carrier shell
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Subclass: Caenogastropoda
Order: Littorinimorpha
Superfamily: Xenophoroidea
Family: Xenophoridae
Troschel, 1852 (1840)
Genera

See text

Synonyms
  • Phoridae Gray, 1840
  • Onustidae H. Adams & A. Adams, 1854

Xenophoridae, commonly called carrier shells, is a family of medium-sized to large sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the clade Littorinimorpha.

Contents

Distribution

The Xenophorids live on sand and mud bottoms of the continental shelves and the continental slopes of the subtropical and tropical seas and range from very shallow water to depths of more than 1,400 meters. [1]

Shell description

Xenophorids are unusual in that in many of the species the animal cements small stones or shells to the edge of the shell as it grows, thus the shells of those species are sometimes humorously referred to as "shell-collecting shells". The genus name Xenophora comes from two ancient Greek words and means "bearing (or carrying) foreigners". The shells are small to rather large (diameter of base without attachments 19–160 mm; height of shell 21–100 mm), depressed to conical, with narrow to wide, simple to spinose peripheral edge or flange separating spire from base. Aperture large, base broad, rather flattened, often umbilicate. Periostracum very thin or wanting. Protoconch depressed-conical, multispiral (in one species paucispiral). Teleoconch usually with foreign objects attached in spiral series to peripheral flange and, sometimes, remainder of dorsum, at least on early whorls. Operculum horny, yellowish to brown, nucleus lateral, with simple growth lamellae, sometimes with conspicuous radial striae or hollow radial ribs. [1]

Classification

Xenophoridae belongs to the superfamily Stromboidea, which also includes the true conchs (Strombidae). [2] It had previously been placed in a monotypic superfamily, Xenophoroidea, [3] but placement in Stromboidea is supported by behavioral, [4] anatomical, [5] and genetic data. [6] Within Stromboidea, Xenophoridae appears to be most closely related to Aporrhaidae and Struthiolariidae. [6]

According to the taxonomy of the Gastropoda by Bouchet & Rocroi (2005) the family Xenophoridae has no subfamilies.

Genera

Aperture view of a xenophorid gastropod (Xenophora pallidula). XenophoridApertureView.jpg
Aperture view of a xenophorid gastropod (Xenophora pallidula).

Genera within the family Xenophoridae include: [1] [7]

Behavior

Like other stromboids, xenophorids move in a "leaping" manner. [4] Xenophora conchyliophora has been found to move an average of 233.5 cm per day, with its speed during short-duration "sprints" averaging 1.44 cm per minute and reaching a maximum speed of 5.5 cm per minute. [11]

Xenophorids incorporate shells, coral, and other objects into their shells as they grow. Several different hypotheses have been proposed to explain this behavior. [12]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orthogastropoda</span> Historic group of molluscs

Orthogastropoda was a major taxonomic grouping of snails and slugs, an extremely large subclass within the huge class Gastropoda according to the older taxonomy of the Gastropoda.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Strombidae</span> Family of molluscs

Strombidae, commonly known as the true conchs, is a taxonomic family of medium-sized to very large sea snails in the superfamily Stromboidea, and the Epifamily Neostromboidae. The term true conchs, being a common name, does not have an exact meaning. It may generally refer to any of the Strombidae but sometimes is used more specifically to include only Strombus and Lambis. The family currently includes 26 extant, and 10 extinct genera.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Littorinimorpha</span> Order of gastropods

Littorinimorpha is a large order of snails, gastropods, consisting primarily of sea snails, but also including some freshwater snails and land snails.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stromboidea</span> Superfamily of gastropods

The Stromboidea, originally named the Strombacea by Rafinesque in 1815, is a superfamily of medium-sized to very large sea snails in the clade Littorinimorpha.

<i>Xenophora</i> Genus of gastropods

Xenophora, commonly called carrier shells, is a genus of medium-sized to large sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Xenophoridae, the carrier snails or carrier shells. The genus Xenophora is the type genus of the family Xenophoridae.

The taxonomy of the Gastropoda, as revised by Winston Ponder and David R. Lindberg in 1997, is an older taxonomy of the class Gastropoda, the class of molluscs consisting of all snails and slugs. The full name of the work in which this taxonomy was published is Towards a phylogeny of gastropod molluscs: an analysis using morphological characters.

<i>Strombus pugilis</i> Species of gastropod

Strombus pugilis, common names the fighting conch and the West Indian fighting conch, is a species of medium to large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Strombidae, the true conchs.

<i>Lobatus raninus</i> Species of gastropod

Lobatus raninus, common name the hawk-wing conch, is a species of medium to large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Strombidae, the true conchs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olivoidea</span> Superfamily of gastropods

Olivoidea is a taxonomic superfamily of minute to medium-large predatory sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the order Neogastropoda.

Pseudolividae is a taxonomic family of medium-sized sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Olivoidea.

<i>Titanostrombus goliath</i> Species of gastropod

Titanostrombus goliath, previously known as Lobatus goliath and Strombus goliath, common name the goliath conch, is a species of very large edible sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Strombidae, the true conchs. T. goliath is one of the largest mollusks of the Western Atlantic Ocean, and also one of the largest species among the Strombidae. It was once considered endemic to Brazil, but specimens have also been recently found in the waters of Barbados. Brazilian common names for this species include búzio de chapéu or búzio, and búzio de aba or buzo in. Some phylogenetic hypotheses consider T. goliath as closely related to the queen conch, Aliger gigas.

<i>Aliger gallus</i> Species of gastropod

Aliger gallus, previously known as Strombus gallus, common name the rooster conch or rooster-tail conch, is a species of medium-sized sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Strombidae, the true conchs.

<i>Terebellum terebellum</i> Species of gastropod

Terebellum terebellum, common name the Terebellum conch, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Seraphsidae, the true conchs.

<i>Onustus caribaeus</i> Species of gastropod

Onustus caribaeus is a species of large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Xenophoridae, the carrier shells.

<i>Onustus longleyi</i> Species of snail

Onustus longleyi is a species of large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Xenophoridae, the carrier shells.

<i>Stellaria chinensis</i> Species of gastropod

Stellaria chinensis is a species of large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Xenophoridae, the carrier shells.

<i>Stellaria solaris</i> Species of gastropod

Stellaria solaris, common name the sun carrier shell, is a species of large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Xenophoridae, the carrier shells.

<i>Onustus</i> Genus of gastropods

Onustus is a genus of large sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Xenophoridae, the carrier shells.

<i>Strombus gracilior</i> Species of gastropod

Strombus gracilior, common names the Eastern Pacific fighting conch, or the Panama fighting conch, is a species of medium to large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Strombidae, the true conchs.

<i>Rimellopsis powisii</i> Species of gastropod

Rimellopsis powisii, common name Powis's tibia, is a species of large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusks in the family Rostellariidae within the Stromboidea, the true conchs and their allies.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Kreipl, K. & Alf, A. (1999): Recent Xenophoridae. 148 pp. incl. 28 color plts. ConchBooks, Hackenheim, ISBN   3-925919-26-0.
  2. "Xenophoridae Troschel, 1852 [1840]". Molluscabase. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  3. Bouchet, Philippe; Rocroi, Jean-Pierre; Hausdorf, Bernhard; Kaim, Andrzej; Kano, Yasunori; Nützel, Alexander; Parkhaev, Pavel; Schrödl, Michael; Strong, Ellen E. (2017). "Revised Classification, Nomenclator and Typification of Gastropod and Monoplacophoran Families". Malacologia. 61 (1–2): 1–526. doi:10.4002/040.061.0201. eISSN   2168-9075. ISSN   0076-2997. S2CID   91051256.
  4. 1 2 Berg, Carl J. (1974). "A comparative ethological study of strombid gastropods". Behaviour. 51 (3–4): 274–321. doi:10.1163/156853974X00219. ISSN   0005-7959.
  5. Simone, Luiz Ricardo L. (2005-11-28). "Comparative morphological study of representatives of the three families of Stromboidea and the Xenophoroidea (Mollusca, Caenogastropoda), with an assessment of their phylogeny". Arquivos de Zoologia. 37 (2): 141. doi: 10.11606/issn.2176-7793.v37i2p141-267 . eISSN   2176-7793. ISSN   0066-7870.
  6. 1 2 Irwin, Alison R.; Strong, Ellen E.; Kano, Yasunori; Harper, Elizabeth M.; Williams, Suzanne T. (2021). "Eight new mitogenomes clarify the phylogenetic relationships of Stromboidea within the caenogastropod phylogenetic framework". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 158: 107081. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2021.107081. ISSN   1055-7903. PMID   33482382. S2CID   231687470.
  7. "Xenophoridae". Integrated Taxonomic Information System.
  8. WoRMS (2010). Onustus Swainson, 1840. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=468030 on 2010-08-07
  9. WoRMS (2010). on 2010-08-07 Stellaria Möller, 1832. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species
  10. WoRMS (2010). Xenophora Fischer von Waldheim, 1807. In: Bouchet, P.; Gofas, S.; Rosenberg, G. (2010) World Marine Mollusca database. on 2010-08-07 Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species
  11. Berg, Carl J. (1975). "Behavior and ecology of conch (Superfamily Strombacea) on a deep subtidal algal plain". Bulletin of Marine Science. 25 (3): 307–317.
  12. Feinstein, Noah; Cairns, Stephen D. (1998). "Learning from the collector: a survey of azooxanthellate corals affixed by Xenophora (Gastropoda: Xenophoridae), with an analysis and discussion of attachment patterns". The Nautilus. 112 (3): 73–83.