The Nassariidae, Nassa mud snails (US), or dog whelks (UK) are a taxonomic family of small to medium-sized snails, mostly marine gastropod mollusks in the clade Neogastropoda. These snails have rounded shells with a high spire, an oval aperture, and a siphonal notch. This family of snails is found worldwide.

These snails are found mostly in shallow water, on sandy or muddy substrates, often intertidally, but sometimes in deep water. They can be present in very large numbers in suitable habitat. Nassariidae are primarily active and lively scavengers.

Subtaxa , the World Register of Marine Species accepts the following 48 genera, arranged within 7 subfamilies.

Anentominae E. E. Strong, Galindo & Kantor, 2017 Anentome Cossmann, 1901 Clea H. Adams & A. Adams, 1855 Oligohalinophila Neiber & Glaubrecht, 2019 Bulliinae Allmon, 1990 Adinus H.Adams & A. Adams, 1853 Bullia J.E. Gray, 1833 Bulliopsis Conrad, 1862 † Cylleninae Bellardi, 1882 Cyllene J.E. Gray, 1834 Neoteron Pilsbry & H. N. Lowe, 1932 Dorsaninae Cossmann, 1901 Akburunella V. P. Kolesnikov, 1935 † Calophos Woodring, 1964 † Cyllenina Bellardi, 1882 † Dorsanum J.E. Gray, 1847 Keepingia C. P. Nuttall & J. Cooper, 1973 † Lisbonia K. van W. Palmer, 1937 † Pseudocominella C. P. Nuttall & J. Cooper, 1973 † Thanetinassa C. P. Nuttall & J. Cooper, 1973 † Whitecliffia C. P. Nuttall & J. Cooper, 1973 † Nassariinae Iredale, 1916 (1835)

The operculum is ovate, acute and with an apical nucleus; the margin is entire or serrated. The eyes in some of the genera are near the base of the tentacles, in others near their middle, and are sometimes wanting. The aperture of the shell is either truncate, or with a short recurved siphonal canal, and the inner lip is usually callous and spreading over the body whorl. Buccitriton Conrad, 1865 † Caesia H.Adams & A. Adams, 1853 Demoulia Gray, 1838 Ilyanassa W. Stimpson, 1865 Nassarius Duméril, 1805 Nassodonta H.Adams, 1867 Naytia H.Adams & A. Adams, 1853 Phrontis H.Adams & A. Adams, 1853 Psilarius Woodring, 1964 † Reticunassa Iredale, 1936 Tritia Risso, 1826 Yemeninassoides Bonfitto, 2024 Photinae J.E. Gray, 1857 Antillophos Woodring, 1928 Coraeophos Makiyama, 1936 † Cymatophos Pilsbry & Olsson, 1941 † Engoniophos Woodring, 1928 Europhos Landau, Harzhauser, İslamoğlu & C. M. Silva, 2013 † Glyptophos Landau, C. M. Silva & Heitz, 2016 † Judaphos P. Jung, 1995 † Metaphos Olsson, 1964 Microphos Dekkers & H. Dekker, 2020 Northia Gray, 1847 Philindophos Shuto, 1969 † Phos Montfort, 1810 Rhipophos Woodring, 1964 † Strombinophos Pilsbry & Olsson, 1941 Tritiaria Conrad, 1865 † Tomliniinae Kantor, Fedosov, Kosyan, Puillandre, Sorokin, Kano, R. Clark & Bouchet, 2021 Nassaria Link, 1807 Pseudanachis Thiele, 1924 Tomlinia Peile, 1937 Trajana J.A. Gardner, 1948

Taxonomic history The family Nassariidae is closely related to the family of the true whelks, Buccinidae, because of their shared characteristics in the anatomy of the species in these families,(Ponder, 1973The origin and evolution of the Neogastropoda.Malacologia. 1973;12(2):295-338.Systematics of the family Nassariidae (Mollusca: Gastropoda), Bulletin of the Auckland Institute and Museum, 14, 356 pThe molecular phylogeny of the Buccinidae(Caenogastropoda: Neogastropoda) as inferred from the complete mitochondrial 16 S rRNA gene sequences of selected representatives, Molluscan Research 25 (2), pp. 85-98), i.e. a long proboscis, the loss of glandular dorsal folds, and a smaller gland of Leiblein (a dorsal venom gland in the mid-oesophagus).

According to the taxonomy of the Gastropoda by Bouchet & Rocroi (2005) the family Nassariidae consisted of four subfamilies: Nassariinae Iredale, 1916 (1835) - synonyms: Nassinae Swainson, 1835 (inv.); Cyclopsidae Chenu, 1859 (inv.); Cyclonassinae Gill, 1871; Alectrionidae Dall, 1908; Arculariidae Iredale, 1915 Bullinae Allmon, 1990 (not recognized by Haitao LI et al., 2010 ) Cylleninae L. Bellardi, 1882 Dorsaninae Cossmann, 1901 - synonym: Duplicatinae Muskhelishvili, 1967 In 2006, Photinae Gray, 1857 was recognized.

In 2017, Strong, Galindo & Kantor, 2017 recognized Anentominae as a new subfamily.Strong, E. E., Galindo, L. A., & Kantor, Y. I. (2017). "Quid est Clea helena? Evidence for a previously unrecognized radiation of assassin snails (Gastropoda: Buccinoidea: Nassariidae)". PeerJ 5: e3638. .

Kantor et al. (2022) used molecular data to revise the classification of the Buccinoidea superfamily, proposing 20 taxa of family rank and 23 subfamilies. This included the description of a new subfamily of Nassariidae, Tomliniinae.

References

External links

Miocene Gastropods and Biostratigraphy of the Kern River Area, California; United States Geological Survey Professional Paper 642 Galindo, L. A.; Puillandre, N.; Utge, J.; Lozouet, P.; Bouchet, P. (2016). The phylogeny and systematics of the Nassariidae revisited (Gastropoda, Buccinoidea). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 99: 337-353