Caecidae 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 very small and minute sea snail

Sea snail

Sea snail is a common name for those snails that normally live in saltwater, marine gastropod molluscs....

s or micromolluscs, marine

Marine (ocean)

Marine is an umbrella term. As an adjective it is usually applicable to things relating to the sea or ocean, such as marine biology, marine ecology and marine geology...

 gastropod molluscs in the order Littorinimorpha

Littorinimorpha

Littorinimorpha is a large clade of gastropods within Hypsogastropoda consisting primarily of marine species, but also aquatic and terrestrial species as well....

.

Habitat

These minute tubular shells can be found living in marine sediment, or among algae or sponges, in warm and temperate seas.

Shell description

The shells in this family, are unusual in that the adult shell is a curving tube. In the subfamily Caecinae the protoconch is lost and the tube is sealed with a permanent calcareous plug at one end. In the subfamilies Ctiloceratinae and Strebloceratinae the protoconch is retained. At the other end the tube is sealed by a circular 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...

. The spiral part is almost always lost when outgrowing the juvenile stage. The color of the shell is white to pale yellow.

Taxonomy

This family contains three subfamilies :

• Caecinae Gray, 1850
• Ctiloceratinae Iredale
  Tom Iredale
  Tom Iredale was an English-born ornithologist and malacologist who had a long association with Australia, where he lived for most of his life. He was an autodidact who never went to university and lacked formal training...
  
   & Laseron
  Charles Francis Laseron
  Charles Francis Laseron , was an American-born Australian naturalist and malacologist.Charles Laseron was born on 6 December 1887 at Manitowoc, Wisconsin, United States of America, to English parents the Rev...
  
  , 1957
• Strebloceratinae Bandel, 1996

Genera

• Caecum Fleming, 1813
• Carinocera Iredale & Laseron, 1957
• Ctiloceras R. B. Watson, 1886
• Elephantellum
• Enigmerces Iredale & Laseron, 1957
• Fartulum Carpenter
  Phillip Pearsall Carpenter
  Philip Pearsall Carpenter Rev. Dr. , who in 1841, was ordained Presbyterian minister in England, and a Doctorate of Philosophy in 1860, and whose field work as a malacologist or conchologist in North America is still well regarded today...
  
  , 1857
• Gladioceras Iredale & Laseron, 1957
• Jayella Iredale & Laseron, 1957 WoRMS : Jayella accessed : 18 October 2010
• Meioceras
  Meioceras
  Meioceras is a genus of minute sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks or micromollusks in the family Caecidae.-Species:Species within the genus Meioceras include:* Meioceras cornucopiae Carpenter, 1858* Meioceras cubitatum Folin, 1868...
  
  Carpenter, 1859
• Micranellum Bartsch 1900
• Parastrophia
  Parastrophia
  Parastrophia is a genus of minute sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks or micromollusks in the family Caecidae.-Species:Species within the genus Parastrophia include:* Parastrophia asturiana de Folin, 1870...
  
  de Folin, 1870
• Ponderoceras Bandel, 1996
• Pseudoparastrophia
• Strebloceras Carpenter 1859
• Torresella Iredale & Laseron, 1957
• Transcopia Iredale & Laseron, 1957
• Watsonia
  Watsonia
  Watsonia can refer to:* Watsonia , a genus of flowering plants in the iris family.* Watsonia , a botanical journal .* Watsonia, Victoria, a suburb of Melbourne, Australia....
  
  de Folin, 1880

Genera brought into synonymy :

• Brochina Gray, 1857 : synonym of Caecum Fleming, 1813
• Brochus T. Brown, 1827 : synonym of Caecum Fleming, 1813
• Moreletia de Folin, 1869 : synonym of Parastrophia de Folin, 1869
• Odontidium Philippi, 1836 : synonym of Caecum Fleming, 1813
• Pedumicra Iredale & Laseron, 1957 : synonym of Parastrophia de Folin, 1869
• Phleboceras de Folin, 1868 : synonym of Strebloceras Carpenter, 1859
• Pictocaecum Habe 1978 : synonym of Caecum Fleming, 1813