Species of this family can be found worldwide, but the major part occurs in the Indo-Pacific Region. Most species live between the intertidal zone and offshore to a depth between 200 m to 500 mm (exceptionally below 1,000 m).
Shell description
The
shells of triphorids are small (between 2 mm and 10 mm - exceptionally 50 mm) and extremely high-
spired, with numerous narrow
whorls which often have distinctive sculpture. The majority of species in this family are
left-handed or sinistral.
Taxonomy
Facts about their taxonomy are rather scant, complicated by the high diversity and the intra- and inter-specific variability of the species. Most triphorid collections available in Museums of Natural History are still undescribed.[2]
Gründel (1975), stated that the correct family name is Triforidae Jousseaume, 1884 and not Triphoridae, but this is only true when the genera Triforis and Triphora are placed in the same family (Kosuge, 1976). Marshall (1980) however stated that the two genera need to be placed in two different families: the Triforidae and the Triphoridae.[1]WoRMS do not recognise these 3 subfamilies and consider them alternative representation of Triphoridae.[1]
Genera
Genera within the family Triphoridae include:[3][4][5]
^Albano & Bakker(2016), Annotated catalogue of the types of Triphoridae (Mollusca, Gastropoda) in the Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin, with lectotype designations; Zoosyst. Evol. 92 (1) 2016, 33–78 |DOI 10.3897/zse.92.5936
Fernandes M..R., Pimenta A.D. & Leal J.H., 2013. Taxonomic review of Triphorinae (Gastropoda: Triphoridae) from the Vitoria-Trindade Seamount Chain, southeastern Brazil. The Nautilus 127(1): 1-18
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Triphoridae.