''Trimusculus'' 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 ...

of medium-sized air-breathing

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 ...

s or false

limpet Limpets are a group of aquatic snails that exhibit a conical shell shape (patelliform) and a strong, muscular foot. Limpets are members of the class Gastropoda, but are polyphyletic, meaning the various groups called "limpets" descended indep ...

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 * ...

pulmonate Pulmonata or pulmonates, is an informal group (previously an order, and before that a subclass) of snails and slugs characterized by the ability to breathe air, by virtue of having a pallial lung instead of a gill, or gills. The group includ ...

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 ...

mollusc 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 esti ...

s in the family Trimusculidae. ''Trimusculus'' is the only genus in the family Trimusculidae. Trimusculidae, the button snails, is the only family in the superfamily Trimusculoidea, a

superfamily SUPERFAMILY is a database and search platform of structural and functional annotation for all proteins and genomes. It classifies amino acid sequences into known structural domains, especially into SCOP superfamilies. Domains are functional, str ...

of false limpets. These are marine pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the

clade A clade (), also known as a monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that are monophyletic – that is, composed of a common ancestor and all its lineal descendants – on a phylogenetic tree. Rather than the English term, ...

Eupulmonata Eupulmonata is a taxonomic clade of air-breathing snails. The great majority of this group are land snails and slugs, but some are marine and some are saltmarsh snails that can tolerate salty conditions. Linnean taxonomy *Suborder Eupulmonat ...

. Trimusculids are ''not'' very closely related to the siphonariids, another family of marine air-breathing false-limpets. The trimusculids are in the clade

, and are quite closely related to air-breathing land snails.

Description

Trimusculids are sometimes known as "

button A button is a fastener that joins two pieces of fabric together by slipping through a loop or by sliding through a buttonhole. In modern clothing and fashion design, buttons are commonly made of plastic but also may be made of metal, wood, ...

shells" or "button snails" because, especially in the eastern Pacific species ''Trimusculus reticulatus'', the shells are small, white, almost perfectly circular in outline, only moderately elevated, and thus the shells are somewhat reminiscent of traditional white shirt buttons.

Species

Species within the genus ''Trimusculus'' include: * '' Trimusculus afer'' (Gmelin, 1791) * '' Trimusculus carinatus'' (Dall, 1870) * ''

Trimusculus conicus ''Trimusculus conicus'' is an air-breathing sea snail or false limpet, a pulmonate gastropod mollusc in the family (biology), family Trimusculidae, the button snails. This species is endemic (ecology), endemic to eastern and southern Australia, ...

'' (Angas, 1867) - synonym: ''Gadinalea conica'' (Angas, 1867) * '' Trimusculus costatus'' (Krauss, 1848) * '' Trimusculus escondidus'' Poppe & Groh, 2009 * '' Trimusculus goesi'' (Hubendick, 1946) * '' Trimusculus kurodai'' Habe, 1958 * ''

Trimusculus mammillaris ''Trimusculus'' is a genus of medium-sized air-breathing sea snails or false limpets, marine pulmonate gastropod molluscs in the family Trimusculidae. ''Trimusculus'' is the only genus in the family Trimusculidae. Trimusculidae, the button sna ...

'' (Linnaeus, 1758) * '' Trimusculus mauritianus'' (Martens, 1880) * '' Trimusculus niveus'' (Hutton, 1883) - synonym: ''Gadinalea nivea'' Hutton, 1883 * ''

Trimusculus odhneri ''Trimusculus'' is a genus of medium-sized air-breathing sea snails or false limpets, marine pulmonate gastropod molluscs in the family Trimusculidae. ''Trimusculus'' is the only genus in the family Trimusculidae. Trimusculidae, the button sna ...

'' (Hubendick, 1946) * ''

Trimusculus peruvianus ''Trimusculus'' is a genus of medium-sized air-breathing sea snails or false limpets, marine pulmonate gastropod molluscs in the family Trimusculidae. ''Trimusculus'' is the only genus in the family Trimusculidae. Trimusculidae, the button sna ...

'' (Sowerby II, 1835) * '' Trimusculus reticulatus'' (Sowerby II, 1835) * ''

Trimusculus stellatus ''Trimusculus'' is a genus of medium-sized air-breathing sea snails or false limpets, marine pulmonate gastropod molluscs in the family Trimusculidae. ''Trimusculus'' is the only genus in the family Trimusculidae. Trimusculidae, the button sna ...

'' (Sowerby II, 1835) * '' Trimusculus yamamotoi'' Habe, 1958Bouchet, P. (2010). ''Trimusculus yamamotoi'' Habe, 1958. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=414598 on 2011-01-09 ;Synonyms: * ''Trimusculus mammilaris'' ic synonym of ''Trimusculus mammillaris'' (Linnaeus, 1758) (misspelling of mammillaris (Linnaeus, 1758)) * ''Trimusculus niveus'' (Hutton, 1878): synonym of ''Trimusculus conicus'' (Angas, 1867) * ''Trimusculus semicorneus'' (Preston, 1908): synonym of ''Acmaea semicornea'' Preston, 1908: synonym of '' Discradisca semicornea'' (Preston, 1908)

References

* Poppe G. & Groh K. (2009) A new species of Trimusculus (Gastropoda: Eupulmonata: Trimusculidae) from the Central Philippines. Visaya 2(5): 91-93 * Dayrat, B., Conrad, M., Balayan, S., White, T. R., Albrecht, C., Golding, R., Gomes, S. R., Harasewych, M. G., & Frias Martins, A. M. de. (2011). Phylogenetic relationships and evolution of pulmonate gastropods (Mollusca): new insights from increased taxon sampling. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 59: 425-437.

External links

Schmidt F.C. 1818, Versuch über die beste Einrichtung zur Aufstellung: Behandlung und Aufbewahrung der verschiedenen Naturkörper und gegenṣtände der Kunst, vorzüglich der Conchylien-Sammlungen, nebst kurzer Beurtheilung der conchyliologischen Systeme und Schriften und einer tabellarischen Zusammenstellung und Vergleichung der sechs besten und neuesten conchyliologischen Systeme. Gotha, J. Perth, 252 pp.

Gray, J. E. (1824). Zoological notices. On the characters of zoophytes. On Gadinia, a new genus of patelloid shells. On some new species of Ampullariadae (Marisa and Bithinia). The Philosophical Magazine and Journal. 63 (312): 274-277

Sowerby, G. B. I. (1835). Characters of and observations on new genera and species of Mollusca and Conchifera collected by Mr. Cuming. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. 3(25): 4-7; 3(26): 21-23; 3(27): 41-43; 46-47; 3(28): 49-51; 3(30): 84-85; 3(30): 93-96; 3(31): 109-110

redale, T. (1940). Marine Molluscs from Lord Howe Island, Norfolk Island, Australia, and New Caledonia. Australian Zoologist. 9: 429-443

Rehder, H. A. (1940). On the molluscan genus Trimusculus Schmidt 1818, with notes on some Mediterranean and West African Siphonarias. Proceedings of The Biological Society of Washington. 53: 67-69
{{Commons category Trimusculidae Gastropods described in 1818