Bullinidae is a taxonomic family of small sea snail

Sea snail

Sea snail is a common name for those snails that normally live in saltwater, marine gastropod molluscs....

s or bubble snails, marine

Marine (ocean)

Marine is an umbrella term. As an adjective it is usually applicable to things relating to the sea or ocean, such as marine biology, marine ecology and marine geology...

 gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Acteonoidea

Acteonoidea

Acteonoidea is a superfamily of sea snails, or bubble snails, marine gastropod mollusks.- Taxonomy :In the taxonomy of Bouchet & Rocroi , the superfamily Acteonoidea has been included into the informal group "Lower Heterobranchia" , also known as the Allogastropoda.Only one of analyses by Jörger...

.

Synonyms for this family are Nonacteoninidae Bandel, 1994 and Sulcoactaeonidae Gründel, 1997.

The original spelling was "Bullinadae". This family was declared to be a separate family by William B. Rudman

William B. Rudman

Dr. William B. Rudman, usually known as Bill Rudman , from New Zealand and Australia, is a biologist, a researcher who studies molluscs, in other words, a malacologist...

 in 1972.

Shell description

The shells have a large aperture, which is rounded at the outer lip. The shells usually have striking markings.

Habitat

These gastropods live in the intertidal to sublittoral waters of tropical and subtropical seas.

Life habits

The mantle

Mantle (mollusc)

The mantle is a significant part of the anatomy of molluscs: it is the dorsal body wall which covers the visceral mass and usually protrudes in the form of flaps well beyond the visceral mass itself.In many, but by no means all, species of molluscs, the epidermis of the mantle secretes...

 can be retracted completely into the shell, but the operculum

Operculum (gastropod)

The operculum, meaning little lid, is a corneous or calcareous anatomical structure which exists in many groups of sea snails and freshwater snails, and also in a few groups of land snails...

 is too small to cover the opening. These snails regurgitate their meals when attempting to retract into their shells.

Further treatment under Acteonoidea

Acteonoidea

Acteonoidea is a superfamily of sea snails, or bubble snails, marine gastropod mollusks.- Taxonomy :In the taxonomy of Bouchet & Rocroi , the superfamily Acteonoidea has been included into the informal group "Lower Heterobranchia" , also known as the Allogastropoda.Only one of analyses by Jörger...

 and Cephalaspidea

Cephalaspidea

The suborder Cephalaspidea, also known as the headshield slugs and bubble snails, is a clade of sea slugs and bubble snails, marine gastropod mollusks within the larger clade Euopisthobranchia....

.