''Protoma'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

sea snail Sea snail is a common name for slow-moving marine gastropod molluscs, usually with visible external shells, such as whelk or abalone. They share the taxonomic class Gastropoda with slugs, which are distinguished from snails primarily by the ...

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 * ...

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

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 ...

Turritellidae Turritellidae, common name the "tower shells" or "tower snails", is a taxonomic family of small to medium-sized sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the clade Sorbeoconcha. These snails are filter feeders. This method of feeding is s ...

Species

Extant species within the genus ''Protoma'' include: * '' Protoma knockeri'' Baird, 1870 ; Species brought into synonymy: * ''Protoma capensis'' (Krauss, 1848): synonym of ''

Turritella capensis ''Turritella capensis'', common name the waxy screw shell, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Turritellidae. Description Distribution This marine species occurs off the coast of South Africa South A ...

'' (Krauss, 1848)

Extinct species

*† ''Protoma cathedralis'' Brongniart 1856 *† ''Protoma deshayesi'' d'Archiac 1850 *† ''Protoma renevieri'' d'Archiac and Haime 1854 *† ''Protoma retrodilatatum'' Vredenburg 1928 *† ''Protoma rotifera'' Deshayes 1832 *† ''Protoma sindiense'' Vredenburg 1928 *† ''Protoma subrenevieri'' Vredenburg 1928 Fossils of sea snails within this genus have been found in sediments of

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, and

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

from

Oligocene The Oligocene ( ) is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present ( to ). As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the epoch are well identified but the ...

Quaternary The Quaternary ( ) is the current and most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS). It follows the Neogene Period and spans from 2.58 million years ...

(age range: 28.4 to 0.012 million years ago).Fossilworks
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References

* Vaught, K.C. (1989). ''A classification of the living Mollusca''. American Malacologists: Melbourne, FL (USA). . XII, 195 pp.
Branch, G.M. et al. (2002). ''Two Oceans''. 5th impression. David Philip, Cate Town & Johannesburg
Protoma Monotypic gastropod genera Extant Oligocene first appearances {{Turritellidae-stub