Macluritidae

Macluritidae is an extinct family of relatively large, Lower Ordovician to Devonian, macluritacean gastropods(?), hypserstrophically coiled, that is dextral while appearing sinsitral, of which the genus '' Maclurites'' is arch-typical. The base of their shells is flat or gently protruding while the upper side is generally concave.

Taxonomy

J.B Knight, ''et al.'', 1960 included the Macluritidae in the prosobranch Archeogastropoda and included the family in the Macluritacea. Linsely and Keir, 1984 removed the Macluritidae, along with the Onychochilidae, to the Paragastropoda, a new class of gastropod-like molluscs proposed for forms which they concluded had untorted bodies.

Bouchet & Rocroi, 2005, tentatively included the Macluritidae within the Gastropoda, placing them among Paleozoic molluscs with anisostrophically coiled shells of uncertain position (Gastropoda?) and within the superfamily Macluritoidea. This family has no subfamilies.

Genera

Genera in the family Macluritidae include:''Macluritidae''
The Paleobiology Database, accessed 12 August 2009.
* '' Bridgeina''
* '' Maclurina''
* '' Macluritella'' - synonym: ''Prohelicotoma''.
* '' Maclurites'' Lesueur, 1818 - type genus of the family Macluritidae - synonyms: ''Paramaclurites'', ''Coelocentrus'', ''Mitrospira'', ''Polyenaulus''.
* '' Monitorella''
* '' Palliseria''
* '' Rousseauspira''
* '' Scaevogyra''
* '' Teiichispira''
* '' Zhuozishanospira''

See also

*The Taxonomy of the Gastropoda (Bouchet & Rocroi, 2005)

References

Prehistoric gastropods
Taxa named by Philip Pearsall Carpenter

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