Patellidae 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 sea snail

Snail

Snail is a common name applied to most of the members of the molluscan class Gastropoda that have coiled shells in the adult stage. When the word is used in its most general sense, it includes sea snails, land snails and freshwater snails. The word snail without any qualifier is however more often...

s or true limpets, 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 clade

Clade

A clade is a group consisting of a species and all its descendants. In the terms of biological systematics, a clade is a single "branch" on the "tree of life". The idea that such a "natural group" of organisms should be grouped together and given a taxonomic name is central to biological...

 Patellogastropoda

Patellogastropoda

Patellogastropoda, common name true limpets and historically called Docoglossa, is a major phylogenetic group of marine gastropods, seen either as a clade or as a taxonomic order.-Taxonomy:Patellogastropoda was proposed by David R...

.

Patellidae is the only family in the superfamily Patelloidea. This family has no subfamilies.

(The superfamily Patelloidea should not be confused with the similar-sounding true limpet genus Patelloida

Patelloida

Patelloida is a genus of sea snails or true limpets, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Lottiidae, one of the families of true limpets....

which is in the family Lottiidae

Lottiidae

Lottiidae is a family of sea snails, specifically true limpets, marine gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Lottioidea and the clade Patellogastropoda .- 2005 taxonomy :...

 within the superfamily Lottioidea

Lottioidea

Lottioidea is a superfamily of sea snails or limpets, marine gastropod mollusks in the clade Patellogastropoda, the true limpets.-2005 taxonomy:There are three families within Lottioidea in the taxonomy of the Gastropoda by Bouchet & Rocroi :...

, also part of the Patellogastropoda

Patellogastropoda

Patellogastropoda, common name true limpets and historically called Docoglossa, is a major phylogenetic group of marine gastropods, seen either as a clade or as a taxonomic order.-Taxonomy:Patellogastropoda was proposed by David R...

.)

Taxonomy

A cladogram

Cladogram

A cladogram is a diagram used in cladistics which shows ancestral relations between organisms, to represent the evolutionary tree of life. Although traditionally such cladograms were generated largely on the basis of morphological characters, DNA and RNA sequencing data and computational...

 showing phylogenic relations of Patellogastropoda based on molecular phylogeny

Molecular phylogeny

Molecular phylogenetics is the analysis of hereditary molecular differences, mainly in DNA sequences, to gain information on an organism's evolutionary relationships. The result of a molecular phylogenetic analysis is expressed in a phylogenetic tree...

 research by Nakano & Ozawa (2007):

Genera

Genera and species in the family Patellidae include:

• Ansates
  Ansates
  Ansates is a monospecific genus of sea snails, the true limpets, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Patellidae.-Species:Species within the genus Ansates include:* Ansates pellucida...
  
  G.B. Sowerby II [ex Klein], 1839 - synonym: Patina Gray, 1840
• Cymbula
  Cymbula
  Cymbula is a genus of sea snails, the true limpets, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Patellidae.-Species:Species within the genus Cymbula include:* Cymbula adansonii * Cymbula canescens...
  
  H. & A. Adams, 1854
• Helcion
  Helcion
  Helcion is a genus of sea snails, the true limpets, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Patellidae.-Species:Species within the genus Helcion include:Subgenus Ansates : accepted as Ansates G.B...
  
  Montfort, 1810
  • Subgenus Ansates
    Ansates
    Ansates is a monospecific genus of sea snails, the true limpets, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Patellidae.-Species:Species within the genus Ansates include:* Ansates pellucida...
    
    
  • Subgenus Helcion
    Helcion
    Helcion is a genus of sea snails, the true limpets, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Patellidae.-Species:Species within the genus Helcion include:Subgenus Ansates : accepted as Ansates G.B...
    
    
  • Subgenus Patinastra
• Patella Linnaeus, 1758
• Rhodopetala
  • Rhodopetala rosea
• Scutellastra
  Scutellastra
  Scutellastra is a genus of sea snails with gills, typical true limpets, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Patellidae, the true limpets.-Species:Species within the genus Scutellastra include:* Scutellastra aphanes...
  
  H. Adams & A. Adams, 1854

synonyms:

• Helioniscus is a synonym for Cellana
  Cellana
  Cellana is a genus of sea snails or limpets, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Patellidae, the true limpets. -Distribution:This genus occurs in the temperate and tropical Indo-Pacific oceans, Hawaii and around Australia and New Zealand...
  
  H. Adams, 1869 from family Nacellidae
  Nacellidae
  Nacellidae is a taxonomic family of sea snails or true limpets, marine gastropod molluscs in the clade Patellogastropoda.Nacellidae is the only family in the superfamily Nacelloidea...
  
  

Human uses

Some limpet species in this family are used as a food source in various countries.

A study of Patella caerulea

Patella caerulea

Patella caerulea, common name Rayed Mediterranean Limpet is a species of sea snail, a true limpet, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Patellidae, one of the families of true limpets.-References:...

found that this limpet reduced the cover of algae and barnacle

Barnacle

A barnacle is a type of arthropod belonging to infraclass Cirripedia in the subphylum Crustacea, and is hence related to crabs and lobsters. Barnacles are exclusively marine, and tend to live in shallow and tidal waters, typically in erosive settings. They are sessile suspension feeders, and have...

s on steel panels suspended in sea water in a commercial port, suggesting that the limpet could be used to inhibit fouling of ship hulls.