Cochlespiridae is a taxonomic family

Family (biology)

In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...

 of predatory sea snail

Snail

Snail is a common name applied to most of the members of the molluscan class Gastropoda that have coiled shells in the adult stage. When the word is used in its most general sense, it includes sea snails, land snails and freshwater snails. The word snail without any qualifier is however more often...

s, marine gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Conoidea

Conoidea

Conoidea is a superfamily of predatory sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks within the suborder Hypsogastropoda. This superfamily is a very large group of marine mollusks, estimated at about 340 recent valid genera and subgenera, and considered by one authority to contain 4,000 named living species...

.

This family is not well differentiated morphologically, and there is poor congruence between the molecular and shell characters. Its limits are uncertain. Even the contents of most of the genera are in need of revision.

The family is composed of some genera that used to belong to the subfamily Cochlespirinae

Cochlespirinae

The Cochlespirinae is a subfamily of predatory sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks, belonging to the family Turridae, commonly named turrids.- Genera :Genera in the subfamily Cochlespirinae include:*Abyssocomitas Sysoev & Kantor, 1986...

, in the family Turridae

Turridae

Turridae, , is a large taxonomic family of predatory sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks, that vary in size from minute to moderately large. With more than 4,000 species, the Turridae is the largest mollusk family and group of marine caenogastropods...

. This family has no subfamilies.

General characteristics

This family consists of moderately sized shells, usually between 20 to 30 mm, but in Nihonia maxima

Nihonia maxima

Nihonia maxima is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Cochlespiridae....

the length of shell can reach 128 mm. The shell of Aforia magnifica

Aforia magnifica

Aforia magnifica is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Cochlespiridae. -Description:The size of an adult shell varies between 40 mm and 150 mm.-Distribution:...

even reaches 150 mm. The shell is turriculated and fusiform with a long, sharp spire

Spire (mollusc)

A spire is a descriptive term for part of the coiled shell of mollusks. The word is a convenient aid in describing shells, but it does not refer to a very precise part of shell anatomy: the spire consists of all of the whorls except for the body whorl...

. The aperture

Aperture (mollusc)

The aperture is an opening in certain kinds of mollusc shells: it is the main opening of the shell, where part of the body of the animal emerges for locomotion, feeding, etc....

 is ovate. The columellar margin is smoot. The outer lip

Lip (gastropod)

In the shell of a gastropod mollusk , the margin of the aperture is called the lip or the peristome. In other words, this is a term used to describe part of gastropod shell anatomy....

 has a narrow profound anal sinus on the subsutural ramp. The open siphonal canal

Siphonal canal

Some sea marine gastropods have a soft tubular anterior extension of the mantle called a siphon through which water is drawn into the mantle cavity and over the gill and which serves as a chemoreceptor to locate food. In many carnivorous snails, where the siphon is particularly long, the structure...

 is long, narrow, and straight. 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...

 has a terminal nucleus.

The foot of the animal is truncated anteriorly, obtuse posteriorly. The eyes are located externally near the base of cylindrical tentacles. The radula

Radula

The radula is an anatomical structure that is used by molluscs for feeding, sometimes compared rather inaccurately to a tongue. It is a minutely toothed, chitinous ribbon, which is typically used for scraping or cutting food before the food enters the esophagus...

 formula is 1-0-R-0-1

Genera

• ? Abyssaforia Sysoev & Kantor, 1987
• Aforia
  Aforia
  Aforia is a genus of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Cochlespiridae. -Species:Species within the genus Aforia include:* Aforia abyssalis Sysoev & Kantor, 1987* Aforia circinata...
  
  Dall, 1889
• Ancistrosyrinx
  Ancistrosyrinx
  Ancistrosyrinx is a genus of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Cochlespiridae. -Species:Species within the genus Ancistrosyrinx include:* Ancistrosyrinx clytotropis Species brought into synonymy:...
  
  Dall, 1881
• ? Apiotoma
  Apiotoma
  Apiotoma is a genus of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Cochlespiridae. -Species:Species within the genus Apiotoma include:* Apiotoma tibiaformis Powell, 1969...
  
  Cossmann, 1889
• ? Clavosurcula
  Clavosurcula
  Clavosurcula is a genus of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Cochlespiridae. -Species:Species within the genus Clavosurcula include:* Clavosurcula schepmani Sysoev, 1997* Clavosurcula sibogae Schepman, 1913...
  
  Schepman, 1913
• Cochlespira
  Cochlespira
  Cochlespira is a genus of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Cochlespiridae. -Species:Species within the genus Cochlespira include:* Cochlespira beuteli Powell, 1969* Cochlespira bevdeynzerae Garcia, 2010...
  
  Conrad, 1865
• ? Dallaforia Sysoev & Kantor, 1987
• ? Nihonia
  Nihonia
  Nihonia is a genus of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Cochlespiridae. -Species:Species within the genus Nihonia include:* Nihonia australis * Nihonia circumstricta...
  
  McNeil, 1961
• Sibogasyrinx Powell, 1969
• ? Steiraxis
  Steiraxis
  Steiraxis is a genus of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Cochlespiridae....
  
  Dall, 1896

Genera brought into synonymy:

• Coronasyrinx Powell, 1944 accepted as Cochlespira Conrad, 1865
• Danilacarina Bozzetti, 1997 accepted as Aforia Dall, 1889
• Irenosyrinx Dall, 1908 accepted as Aforia Dall, 1889
• Pagodasyrinx Shuto, 1969 accepted as Cochlespira Conrad, 1865