The Laginiopsidae are a

taxonomic Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification. A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

of planktonic,

marine Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean. Marine or marines may refer to: Ocean * Maritime (disambiguation) * Marine art * Marine biology * Marine debris * Marine habitats * Marine life * Marine pollution Military * ...

opisthobranch Opisthobranchs () is now an informal name for a large and diverse group of specialized complex gastropods which used to be united in the subclass Opisthobranchia. That taxon is no longer considered to represent a monophyletic grouping. Euopisth ...

gastropod The gastropods (), commonly known as snails and slugs, belong to a large taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda (). This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, from freshwater, and from land. T ...

mollusk Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of which are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 85,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized. The number of fossil species is e ...

s in the suborder Gymnosomata, commonly called the '

sea angel Sea angels (clade Gymnosomata) are a large group of small free-swimming sea slugs, not to be confused with Cnidarians (Jellyfish and other similar creatures), classified into six different families. They are pelagic opisthobranchs in the clade G ...

s'. These small

pelagic The pelagic zone consists of the water column of the open ocean, and can be further divided into regions by depth (as illustrated on the right). The word ''pelagic'' is derived . The pelagic zone can be thought of as an imaginary cylinder or wa ...

snails lack shells (except in their early

embryo An embryo is an initial stage of development of a multicellular organism. In organisms that reproduce sexually, embryonic development is the part of the life cycle that begins just after fertilization of the female egg cell by the male spe ...

nic stage). Laginiopsidae is represented by a single species (''

Laginiopsis trilobata The Laginiopsidae are a taxonomic family of planktonic, marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusks in the suborder Gymnosomata, commonly called the 'sea angels'. These small pelagic snails lack shells (except in their early embryonic stage). Lagi ...

''), itself known from only a single specimen. This was one of several species described by the French malacologist Alice Pruvot-Fol. Like other Gymnosomata, the Laginiopsids are likely carnivorous, though nothing about the species' feeding habits and life history are recorded. The body of the single species is rounded with large swimming parapoda (wings). The various tentacles, suckers, jaws, and radula typical of other Gymnosomata are all absent in this family (the lack of a

radula The radula (, ; plural radulae or radulas) is an anatomical structure used by molluscs 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 ...

being particularly distinctive). The head has a long proboscis tipped with the mouth and three fleshy lobes.

Genera and species

Genus and species within the family Laginiopsidae include: * Genus ''

Laginiopsis The Laginiopsidae are a taxonomic family of planktonic, marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusks in the suborder Gymnosomata, commonly called the 'sea angels'. These small pelagic snails lack shells (except in their early embryonic stage). Lagi ...

'' Pruvot-Fol, 1922 ** ''

Laginiopsis triloba The Laginiopsidae are a taxonomic family of planktonic, marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusks in the suborder Gymnosomata, commonly called the 'sea angels'. These small pelagic snails lack shells (except in their early embryonic stage). Lagi ...

'' - distribution:

Azores ) , motto =( en, "Rather die free than subjected in peace") , anthem= ( en, "Anthem of the Azores") , image_map=Locator_map_of_Azores_in_EU.svg , map_alt=Location of the Azores within the European Union , map_caption=Location of the Azores wi ...

, description:

proboscis A proboscis () is an elongated appendage from the head of an animal, either a vertebrate or an invertebrate. In invertebrates, the term usually refers to tubular mouthparts used for feeding and sucking. In vertebrates, a proboscis is an elong ...

ends in three fleshy lobes

References

Taxa named by Alice Pruvot-Fol {{Heterobranchia-stub