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The radula is the basic feeding structure in gastropod molluscs and exhibits great morphological diversity that reflects the exceptional anatomical and ecological diversity occurring in these animals. This uniquely molluscan structure is formed in the blind end of the radular sac by specialized cells (membranoblasts and odontoblasts). Secretion type, and the number and shape of the odontoblasts that form each tooth characterize the mode of radula formation. These characteristics vary in different groups of gastropods. Elucidation of this diversity is key to identifying the main patterns of radula formation in Gastropoda. Of particular interest would be a phylogenetically closely related group that is characterized by high variability of the radula. One such group is the large monophyletic superfamily Conoidea, the radula of which is highly variable and may consist of the radular membrane with five teeth per row, or the radular membrane with only two or three teeth per row, or even just two harpoon-like teeth per row without a radular membrane. We studied the radulae of two species of Conoidea (Clavus maestratii Kilburn, Fedosov & Kantor, 2014 [Drilliidae] and, Lophiotoma acuta (Perry, 1811) [Turridae]) using light and electron microscopy. Based on these data and previous studies, we identify the general patterns of the radula formation for all Conoidea: the dorsolateral position of two groups of odontoblasts, uniform size, and shape of odontoblasts, folding of the radula in the radular sac regardless of the radula configuration. The morphology of the subradular epithelium is most likely adaptive to the radula type.

The rhipidoglossan radula, which is characterized by presence of a central tooth, several lateral teeth, and numerous (more than 10) long marginal teeth in each transverse row, is found in three different subclasses, that is, Vetigastropoda, Neritomorpha and "lower" Heterobranchia. Details of radula formation and its ultrastructure have not been studied in any species with a rhipidoglossan radula. For the first time, we present such data for one vetigastropod species, Puncturella noachina. The radula itself and the radula formation zone were studied using light and electron microscopy (scanning and transmission), as well as confocal laser scanning microscopy. We identify the major features of Vetigastropoda rhipidoglossan radula formation, that is: the posterior bifurcation of the radula formation zone, creating paired horns into which the zones of formation of the marginal teeth extend; the supporting structure in the radula formation zone extends ventrally to strengthen this division; the odontoblasts of the marginal teeth form a multi-layered epithelium; membranoblasts do not differ from odontoblasts in ultrastructure; in some membranoblasts and cells of the sub- and supraradular epithelium basal bodies were found in the apical regions of the cells.

The new replacement name Takashius nom. nov. is proposed to solve the homonymy between the fasciolariid genus Okutanius Kantor et al ., 2018 and the hymenopteran genus Okutanius D.R. Smith, 1981.

The superfamily Buccinoidea is distributed across the oceans of the world from the Arctic Ocean to the Antarctic and from intertidal to abyssal depths. It encompasses 3351 recent species in 337 genera. The latest taxonomic account recognized eight full families. For the first time, the monophyly of the superfamily and the relationships among the families are tested with molecular data supplemented by anatomical and radula data. Five genetic markers were used: fragments of mitochondrial COI, 16S rRNA, 12S rRNA and nuclear Histone 3 (H3) and 28S rRNA genes (for 225 species of 117 genera). Our analysis recovered Buccinoidea monophyletic in Bayesian analyses. The relationships between the formerly recognized families and subfamilies are drastically revised and a new classification of the superfamily is here proposed, now including 20 taxa of family rank and 23 subfamilies. Five new families (Chauvetiidae, Dolicholatiridae, Eosiphonidae, Prodotiidae and Retimohniidae) and one subfamily of Nassariidae (Tomliniinae) are described. Austrosiphonidae and Tudiclidae are resurrected from synonymy and employed in a new taxonomical extension. All but 40 recent genera are reclassified. Our results demonstrate that anatomy is rather uniform within the superfamily. With exceptions, the rather uniform radular morphology alone does not allow the allocation of genera to a particular family without additional molecular data.

In the ancillariid genus Amalda , the shell is character rich and 96 described species are currently treated as valid. Based on shell morphology, several subspecies have been recognized within Amalda hilgendorfi , with a combined range extending at depths of 150–750 m from Japan to the South-West Pacific. A molecular analysis of 78 specimens from throughout this range shows both a weak geographical structuring and evidence of gene flow at the regional scale. We conclude that recognition of subspecies ( richeri Kilburn & Bouchet, 1988, herlaari van Pel, 1989, and vezzaroi Cossignani, 2015) within A. hilgendorfi is not justified. By contrast, hilgendorfi -like specimens from the Mozambique Channel and New Caledonia are molecularly segregated, and so are here described as new, as Amalda miriky sp. nov. and A. cacao sp. nov., respectively. The New Caledonia Amalda montrouzieri complex is shown to include at least three molecularly separable species, including A. allaryi and A. alabaster sp. nov. Molecular data also confirm the validity of the New Caledonia endemics Amalda aureomarginata , A. fuscolingua , A. bellonarum , and A. coriolis . The existence of narrow range endemics suggests that the species limits of Amalda with broad distributions, extending, e.g., from Japan to Taiwan ( A. hinomotoensis ) or even Indonesia, the Strait of Malacca, Vietnam and the China Sea ( A. mamillata ) should be taken with caution.

The practice of species delimitation using molecular data commonly leads to the revealing of species complexes and an increase in the number of delimited species. In a few instances, however, DNA-based taxonomy has led to lumping together of previously described species. Here, we delimit species in the genus Cryptogemma (Gastropoda: Conoidea: Turridae), a group of deep-sea snails with a wide geographical distribution, primarily by using the mitochondrial COI gene. Three approaches of species delimitation (ABGD, mPTP and GMYC) were applied to define species partitions. All approaches resulted in eight species. According to previous taxonomic studies and shell morphology, 23 available names potentially apply to the eight Cryptogemma species that were recognized herein. Shell morphometrics, radular characters and geographical and bathymetric distributions were used to link type specimens to these delimited species. In all, 23 of these available names are here attributed to seven species, resulting in 16 synonymizations, and one species is described as new: Cryptogemma powelli sp. nov. We discuss the possible reasons underlying the apparent overdescription of species within Cryptogemma, which is shown here to constitute a rare case of DNA-based species lumping in the hyper-diversified superfamily Conoidea.

According to a recent taxonomic revision by Kantor et al. (2001), the neogastropod genus Exilia Conrad, 1860, comprises ten mostly rare species that live at depths between 200 and 2000 m. Adult Exilia measure between 30 and 90 mm in shell length, and the genus is mostly represented in museum collections by empty shells. The abundance of this genus is low in the wild, but recent expeditions organized by the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle have yielded several dozen specimens. These new collections include samples preserved for molecular studies. Here, we present the results of the first molecular systematic study of Exilia. Our aim was to investigate the species limits proposed by Kantor et al. (2001) on the basis of shell and anatomical characters. Analysis of DNA sequence data for the cytochrome c oxidase I gene suggests that Exilia hilgendorfi, previously considered to be a single, polymorphic and broadly distributed species, is a complex of at least six species (four of which we sequenced). Two of these species, Exilia cognata n. sp. and E. fedosovi n. sp., are described as new to science. Exilia gracilior, E. claydoni and E. prellei are resurrected from the synonymy of Exilia hilgendorfi; of these three, only the last was sequenced. Exilia vagrans is a well-defined taxon, but our molecular systematic data shows that it consists of two distinct species, which occur sympatrically off Taiwan and are strikingly similar in shell and radular morphology; due to the absence of DNA sequence data from the type locality of E. vagrans (Vanuatu), it is unclear to which of these two species the name would apply. Exilia karukera n. sp., which is conchologically very similar to E. vagrans, was discovered off Guadeloupe, represents the first record of the genus from the Atlantic. For E. elegans, which was previously known only from a single shell, we provide new data including new distributional records (South Africa and the Mozambique Channel), details of the radula and DNA sequence data.

Profundiconus is the most divergent cone snail genus and its unique phylogenetic position, sister to the rest of the family Conidae, makes it a key taxon for examining venom evolution and diversity. Venom gland and foot transcriptomes of Profundiconus cf. vaubani and Profundiconus neocaledonicus were de novo assembled, annotated, and analyzed for differential expression. One hundred and thirty-seven venom components were identified from P. cf. vaubani and 82 from P. neocaledonicus, with only four shared by both species. The majority of the transcript diversity was composed of putative peptides, including conotoxins, profunditoxins, turripeptides, insulin, and prohormone-4. However, there were also a significant percentage of other putative venom components such as chymotrypsin and L-rhamnose-binding lectin. The large majority of conotoxins appeared to be from new gene superfamilies, three of which are highly different from previously reported venom peptide toxins. Their low conotoxin diversity and the type of insulin found suggested that these species, for which no ecological information are available, have a worm or molluscan diet associated with a narrow dietary breadth. Our results indicate that Profundiconus venom is highly distinct from that of other cone snails, and therefore important for examining venom evolution in the Conidae family.

Transcriptome-based exon capture methods provide an approach to recover several hundred markers from genomic DNA, allowing for robust phylogenetic estimation at deep timescales. We applied this method to a highly diverse group of venomous marine snails, Conoidea, for which published phylogenetic trees remain mostly unresolved for the deeper nodes. We targeted 850 protein coding genes (678,322 bp) in ca. 120 samples, spanning all (except one) known families of Conoidea and a broad selection of non-Conoidea neogastropods. The capture was successful for most samples, although capture efficiency decreased when DNA libraries were of insufficient quality and/or quantity (dried samples or low starting DNA concentration) and when targeting the most divergent lineages. An average of 75.4% of proteins was recovered, and the resulting tree, reconstructed using both supermatrix (IQ-tree) and supertree (Astral-II, combined with the Weighted Statistical Binning method) approaches, are almost fully supported. A reconstructed fossil-calibrated tree dates the origin of Conoidea to the Lower Cretaceous. We provide descriptions for two new families. The phylogeny revealed in this study provides a robust framework to reinterpret changes in Conoidea anatomy through time. Finally, we used the phylogeny to test the impact of the venom gland and radular type on diversification rates. Our analyses revealed that repeated losses of the venom gland had no effect on diversification rates, while families with a breadth of radula types showed increases in diversification rates, thus suggesting that trophic ecology may have an impact on the evolution of Conoidea.

Crassispira cerithina (Anton, 1838) is a common shallow water conoidean gastropod species, broadly distributed throughout the Indo-West Pacific. It has a distinctive shell morphology and has been referred to in many publications. It is also the first species of its family to have been studied from the viewpoint of toxinology. However, our molecular phylogenetic analysis based on fragments of the COI and 28 S rRNA genes reveals the existence of two closely related distinct species, one of which is described as new (C. scala n. sp.). These two species are sympatric in several regions of the Indo-Pacific-in the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu and New Caledonia. They can be reliably distinguished by shell morphology and thus cannot be considered truly cryptic species. The radula is very similar in both species and does not permit species delimitation. A conchological reappraisal of further material similar to C. cerithina allows us to recognize two additional species, which are described as new (C. procera n. sp. from the Coral Sea and Philippines, and C. aurea n. sp. from Tahiti). These results demonstrate that even 'well-known' and seemingly well defined species may be species complexes and that molecular techniques should be routinely applied to confirm specimen identification, especially as part of resource-consuming studies, such as toxinology.

The Antarctic Conoidean fauna is critically reviewed based on published data and specimens in the collections of the USNM, IORAS and MNHN. Forty-two species and subspecies of the superfamily Conoidea are recorded as occurring within the Antarctic Convergence (excluding the fauna of the Kerguelen Islands) and are attributed to 14 genera and seven families. These include the new taxa: Antarctospira n. gen. (type species—Leucosyrinx badenpowelli Dell, 1990); Drilliola antarctica n. sp.; Pleurotomella (Pleutoromella) tippetti n. sp.; Pleurotomella (Anomalotomella) petiti n. sp.; Xanthodaphne pastorinoi n. sp. Aforia watsoni is introduced as a new name for Pleurotoma (Surcula) lepta Watson, 1881, non Pleurotoma lepta Edwards, 1861. A lectotype is designated for Conorbella antarctica (Strebel, 1908). New combinations are also proposed. Antarctospira badenpowelli (Dell, 1990), n. comb. (previously assigned to Leucosyrinx); Antarctospira principalis (Thiele, 1912), n. comb. (previously assigned to Typhlom...

Tonnoideans are marine carnivorous caenogastropods that prey on different invertebrates, namely polychaetes, sipunculids, bivalve and gastropod molluscs, and echinoderms. The morphology of the digestive system of 20 species from five families of the Tonnoidea was examined (for most of these species for the first time), and the salivary glands of six of them were studied using serial histological sections. Most of the studied families are rather similar anatomically, except Personidae (Distorsio), which differs both in proboscis morphology and the structure of the salivary glands. In most tonnoideans the salivary glands are split morphologically and functionally into anterior and posterior lobes, the latter synthesising strong sulfuric acid. The ducts of the posterior lobes are lined with non-ciliated epithelium and receive usually paired ciliated ducts from the anterior lobes to form a non-ciliated common duct, opening into the buccal cavity. In Personidae, the salivary glands are not separated in...

The host preference of the symbiotic gastropods Annulobalcis albus, Annulobalcis vinarius and Annulobalcis maculatus in the family Eulimidae for their crinoid hosts was studied experimentally. Y-tubes of plexiglas allowed us to investigate the effect of chemical factors. Sea-water from aquaria containing different crinoids, or similar sea-water from aquaria without crinoids was fed into the distal parts of the Y-tube. From the results, we concluded that probably all the tested eulimids can recognize their hosts. Two are strictly host specific in nature, Annulobalcis albus and Annulobalcis maculatus, and they more often selected the water coming from the aquarium containing their hosts. They responded weakly to water from the aquarium without any crinoids. The third species, Annulobalcis vinarius, which in nature is not strictly host specific, preferred the crinoid Himerometra robustipinna (its main host) over Comatella nigra and Stephanometra tenuipinna (its alternative hosts) on which it is less often found in nature. These molluscs probably use Comatella nigra and Stephanometra tenuipinna as a reserve hosts and rarely colonize them. While chemoreception appears to be the major mechanism of host selection, the tested molluscs often demonstrated no reaction and this suggest that they do not need to settle on the crinoids immediately and that the symbiosis is facultative.

The abyssal and hadal Buccinoidea from the north-western Pacific formerly attributed to the genera Tacita and Calliloncha were analyzed for the first time using both multilocus molecular and morphological data. The results allow re-evaluation of the inter- and intrageneric variability of morphological characters and demonstrate that Tacita, Calliloncha and Paracalliloncha are synonyms of Bayerius, a genus widely distributed in the Pacific Ocean. In our reconstructed phylogeny the genus forms a maximally supported clade with Pararetifusus tenuis and Turrisipho dalli. At present, Bayerius includes 10 species, two of which are described herein as new to science, B. inflatus sp. nov. and B. nekrasovorum sp. nov. with one additional undescribed species represented in our material by a single specimen. The genus is reviewed, with the addition of new data on anatomy and distribution, based on newly obtained material. B. peruvianus is synonymized with B. zenkewitchi. Calliloncha nankaiensis together with Costaria crosnieri are attributed to a new genus, Warenius gen. nov., which clusters with several genera of Buccinoidea from biogenic substrata. Zoobank registration urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:15A64E51-7FE1-4565-B281-1C02C9A23914.

This contribution provides novel information on the anatomy, radula and phylogeny of several species of PhaenomenellaFraussen & Hadorn, 2006, a genus of Buccinoidea Rafinesque, 1815 with unclear affinities. Molecular phylogenetic analysis based on sequences of mitochondrial COI and nuclear 28S rRNA genes of different representatives of Buccinoidea revealed close relationships of Phaenomenella with Siphonalia A. Adams, 1863 both taxa forming a clade with maximal support. The anatomy of two species of the latter genus was examined for the first time for comparative purposes. The subfamily Siphonaliinae Finlay, 1928 was erected for several Recent and fossil genera of Southern Hemisphere Buccinidae Rafinesque, 1815, and is still recognized by current taxonomists (Bouchet et al. 2017). Species of all Recent genera of Siphonaliinae were included in our analysis and the monophyly of the subfamily Siphonaliinae in its original scope is rejected. Molecular and morphological data revealed two still unnamed species of Phaenomenella from the lower bathyal zone of the South China Sea. These species, Phaenomenella nicoi n. sp. and P. samadiae n. sp. are described in the present study.

The genus Pseudolatirus Bellardi, 1884, with the Miocene type species Fusus bilineatus Hornes, 1853, has been used for 13 Miocene to Early Pleistocene fossil species and eight Recent species and has traditionally been placed in the fasciolariid subfamily Peristerniinae Tryon, 1880. Although the fossil species are apparently peristerniines, the Recent species were in their majority suspected to be most closely related to Granulifusus Kuroda & Habe, 1954 in the subfamily Fusininae Wrigley, 1927. Their close affinity was confirmed by the molecular phylogenetic analysis of Couto et al . (2016). In the molecular phylogenetic section we present a more detailed analysis of the relationships of 10 Recent Pseudolatirus -like species, erect two new fusinine genera, Okutanius gen. nov. (type species Fusolatirus kuroseanus Okutani, 1975) and Vermeijius gen. nov. (type species Pseudolatirus pallidus Kuroda & Habe, 1961). Five species are described as new for science, three of them are based on sequenced specimens ( Granulifusus annae sp. nov., G. norfolkensis sp. nov., Okutanius ellenae gen. et sp. nov.) and two ( G. tatianae sp. nov., G. guidoi sp. nov.) are attributed to Granulifusus on the basis of conchological similarities to sequenced species. New data on radular morphology is presented for examined species.

Venom peptides from predatory organisms are a resource for investigating evolutionary processes such as adaptive radiation or diversification, and exemplify promising targets for biomedical drug development. Terebridae are an understudied lineage of conoidean snails, which also includes cone snails and turrids. Characterization of cone snail venom peptides, conotoxins, has revealed a cocktail of bioactive compounds used to investigate physiological cellular function, predator-prey interactions, and to develop novel therapeutics. However, venom diversity of other conoidean snails remains poorly understood. The present research applies a venomics approach to characterize novel terebrid venom peptides, teretoxins, from the venom gland transcriptomes of Triplostephanus anilis and Terebra subulata. Next-generation sequencing and de novo assembly identified 139 putative teretoxins that were analyzed for the presence of canonical peptide features as identified in conotoxins. To meet the challenges of de novo assembly, multiple approaches for cross validation of findings were performed to achieve reliable assemblies of venom duct transcriptomes and to obtain a robust portrait of Terebridae venom. Phylogenetic methodology was used to identify 14 teretoxin gene superfamilies for the first time, 13 of which are unique to the Terebridae. Additionally, basic local algorithm search tool homology-based searches to venom-related genes and posttranslational modification enzymes identified a convergence of certain venom proteins, such as actinoporin, commonly found in venoms. This research provides novel insights into venom evolution and recruitment in Conoidean predatory marine snails and identifies a plethora of terebrid venom peptides that can be used to investigate fundamental questions pertaining to gene evolution.

The genusCleafrom SE Asia is from one of only two unrelated families among the megadiverse predatory marine Neogastropoda to have successfully conquered continental waters. While little is known about their anatomy, life history and ecology, interest has grown exponentially in recent years owing to their increasing popularity as aquarium pets. However, the systematic affinities of the genus and the validity of the included species have not been robustly explored. Differences in shell, operculum and radula characters support separation ofCleaas presently defined into two distinct genera:Clea, for the type speciesClea nigricansand its allies, andAnentomeforClea helenaand allies. A five-gene mitochondrial (COI, 16S, 12S) and nuclear (H3, 28S) gene dataset confirms the placement ofAnentomeas a somewhat isolated offshoot of the family Nassariidae and sister to the estuarineNassodonta. Anatomical data corroborate this grouping and, in conjunction with their phylogenetic placement, support their recognition as a new subfamily, the Anentominae. The assassin snailAnentome helena, a popular import through the aquarium trade so named for their voracious appetite for other snails, is found to comprise a complex of at least four species. None of these likely represents trueAnentome helenadescribed from Java, including a specimen purchased through the aquarium trade under this name in the US and one that was recently found introduced in Singapore, both of which were supported as conspecific with a species from Thailand. The introduction ofAnentome“helena” through the aquarium trade constitutes a significant threat to native aquatic snail faunas which are often already highly imperiled. Comprehensive systematic revision of this previously unrecognized species complex is urgently needed to facilitate communication and manage this emerging threat.

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Gastropod molluscs are one of the most important components of mangrove ecosystem. Mangroves in Central Vietnam have a rather limited distribution due to peculiarities of the coastline morphology and presently their fauna remains understudied. Extensive surveys were conducted in both natural vegetation and artificial mangrove plantations in several localities in Nha Trang Bay from 2005 to 2015. In total 65 species of gastropod molluscs were found alive, 17 of which can be considered as predominantly mangrove-associated. An illustrated guide is provided, with short synonymies and data on ecology and distribution. The recorded molluscan diversity is compared with published data on mangrove gastropods in different regions of the Indo-Pacific. Total species number and the proportion of mangrove-associated species are similar to studied faunas in Hong Kong, Malaysia and Thailand, but the diversity is much lower than that of the mangal fauna of the Philippines.

Parasitic gastropods of the genus Annulobalcis Habe, 1965 (family Eulimidae), associated with the crinoids (comatulids) are common in Nhatrang Bay (Southern Vietnam). Morphological examination of Annulobalcis specimens, collected in this area revealed four distinct forms, significantly different also in host specificity. Mitochondrial cox1 sequence data have shown these forms to comprise four distinct species, their relationships are discussed. As a result of morphological and molecular studies, four new species of the genus Annulobalcis are described: A. albus n. sp., A. wareni n. sp., A. maculatus n. sp., and A. vinarius n. sp. The three former species appeared to be strictly species specific in their choice of host (parasitizing a single host species each), while the latter was found on a number of hosts, although mostly on a single species. Speciation in relation to host specificity of Annulobalcis is discussed.

The neogastropod family Fasciolariidae Gray, 1853 - tulips, horse-conchs, spindles, etc., comprises important representatives of tropical and subtropical molluscan assemblages, with over 500 species in the subfamilies Fasciolariinae Gray, 1853, Fusininae Wrigley, 1927 and Peristerniinae Tryon, 1880. Fasciolariids have had a rather complicated taxonomical history, with several genus names for a long time used as waste baskets to group many unrelated species; based on shell characters, recent taxonomic revisions have, however, began to set some order in its taxonomy. The present work is the first molecular approach to the phylogeny of Fasciolariidae based on a multigene dataset, which provides support for fasciolariids, an old group with a fossil record dating back to the Cretaceous. Molecular markers used were the mitochondrial genes 16S rRNA and cytochrome c oxidase subunit I, and the nuclear genes 18S rRNA, 28S rRNA and histone H3, sequenced for up to 116 ingroup taxa and 17 outgroups. Phylogenetic analyses revealed monophyly of Dolicholatirus Bellardi, 1884 and Teralatirus Coomans, 1965, however it was not possible to discern if the group is the sister clade to the remaining fasciolariids; the latter, on the other hand, proved monophyletic and contained highly supported groups. A first split grouped fusinines and Pseudolatirus Bellardi, 1884; a second split grouped the peristerniine genera Peristernia Morch, 1852 and Fusolatirus Kuroda and Habe, 1971, while the last group comprised fasciolariines and the remaining peristerniines. None of these clades correspond to the present-day accepted circumscription of the three recognized subfamilies.

Cone snail venoms have yielded pharmacologically active natural products of exceptional scientific interest. However, cone snails are a small minority of venomous molluscan biodiversity, the vast majority being tiny venomous morphospecies in the family Turridae. A novel method called lumun-lumun opens access to these micromolluscs and their venoms. Old fishing nets are anchored to the sea bottom for a period of 1-6months and marine biotas rich in small molluscs are established. In a single lumun-lumun community, we found a remarkable gastropod biodiversity (155 morphospecies). Venomous predators belonging to the superfamily Conoidea (36 morphospecies) were the largest group, the majority being micromolluscs in the family Turridae. We carried out an initial analysis of the most abundant of the turrid morphospecies recovered, Clathurella (Lienardia) cincta (Dunker, 1871). In contrast to all cDNA clones characterized from cone snail venom ducts, one of the C. cincta clones identified encoded two different peptide precursors presumably translated from a single mRNA. The prospect of easily accessing so many different morphospecies of venomous marine snails raises intriguing toxinological possibilities: the 36 conoidean morphospecies in this one net alone have the potential to yield thousands of novel pharmacologically active compounds.

To date, studies conducted on cone snail venoms have attributed the origins of this complex mixture of neuroactive peptides entirely to gene expression by the secretory cells lining the lumen of the venom duct. However, specialized tissues such as the salivary glands also secrete their contents into the anterior gut and could potentially contribute some venom components injected into target animals; evidence supporting this possibility is reported here. Sequence analysis of a cDNA library created from a salivary gland of Conus pulicarius revealed the expression of two transcripts whose predicted gene products, after post-translational processing, strikingly resemble mature conopeptides belonging to the alpha-conotoxin family. These two transcripts, like alpha-conotoxin transcripts, putatively encode mature peptides containing the conserved A-superfamily cysteine pattern (CC-C-C) but the highly conserved A-superfamily signal sequences were not present. Analysis of A-superfamily members expressed in the venom duct of the same C. pulicarius specimens revealed three putative alpha-conotoxin sequences; the salivary gland transcripts were not found in the venom duct cDNA library, suggesting that these alpha-conotoxins are salivary gland specific. Therefore, expression of conotoxin-like gene products by the salivary gland could potentially add to the complexity of Conus venoms.

Two new species of Horaiclavus, lacking radula, venom gland and proboscis, are described. The genus is placed in the subfamily Crassispirinae (Turridae). Both species possess a peculiar foregut structure, the muscular rhynchodaeal outgrowth situated in the rhynchocoel. The possible function of the rhynchodaeal outgrowth is discussed. Other studied species of Horaiclavus possess a radula of a typical ‘crassispirine’ type but lack the outgrowth. The anatomy of the foregut of the new species is superficially similar to that of Zemacies excelsa (Turridae: Zemaciinae), which also possesses an additional structure of the rhynchocoel, namely the ‘pyriform gland’. Conchologically, there is no resemblance between Zemacies and Horaiclavus and it is concluded that similar foregut arrangement appeared independently in both lineages. A new monotypic subfamily Zemaciinae was erected mostly on the basis of the unique foregut arrangement of Zemacies excelsa. We express doubts concerning the importance of these characters in establishing a new taxon of subfamilial rank and therefore the validity of the subfamily Zemaciinae.

Feeding of three species of molluscivorous Conus, C. textile, C. bandanus and C. omaria, was studied in aquaria. Conus spp. are able to kill and remove from the shell prey larger than themselves. Also, Conus swallowed prey with weight up to half that of the predator. Estimates suggest that molluscivorous species of Conus are probably able to swallow prey with a shell volume reaching 85% of that of the predator, depending on the shape of the prey’s body. It is confirmed that the thinning of the inner shell walls in Conus is connected with the ability to swallow voluminous prey. Digestion of prey occurs in both the oesophagus and stomach.

The genus Belloliva (Gastropoda: Olividae) consists of small (

The > 10,000 living venomous marine snail species [superfamily Conoidea Fleming, 1822] include cone snails (Conus), the overwhelming focus of research. Hastula hectica (Linnaeus, 1758), a venomous snail in the family Terebridae Morch, 1852 was comprehensively investigated. The Terebridae comprise a major monophyletic group within Conoidea. H. hectica has a striking radular tooth to inject venom that looks like a perforated spear; in Conus, the tooth looks like a hypodermic needle. H. hectica venom contains a large complement of small disulfide-rich peptides, but with no apparent overlap with Conus in gene superfamilies expressed. Although Conus peptide toxins are densely post-translationally modified, no post-translationally modified amino acids were found in any Hastula venom peptide. The results suggest that different major lineages of venomous molluscs have strikingly divergent toxinological and venom-delivery strategies. J. Exp. Zool. (Mol. Deu. Euol.) 308B: 744- 756, 2007. (c) 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Radular ontogenies of four species of the neogastropod family Muricidae are describedthrough comparisons of early post-metamorphic and adult developmental stages, with specificfocus on the rachidian (central) tooth. The degree of rachidian transformation during ontogenyvaries from minor shape change to addition or loss of structural features important forassigning taxa to subfamilies. Changes include: flattening of the rachidian base and a switchfrom a short, beak-like to a long, flattened central cusp in the rapanine Stramonita biserialis;a switch from variable, asymmetric to regular, symmetric expression of inner lateral denticlesin the basal muricid Timbellus phyllopterus; curvature of the rachidian base at the marginsand separation of the pointed base endpoint from the radular membrane to form a marginalcusp in the muricine Chicoreus dilectus; and moderate straightening of the rachidian basein the ocenebrine Vokesinotus perrugatus. From these observations and previous work, wepropose a plesiomorphic developmental sequence for the Muricidae and provide supportingevidence for the developmental origins of novel features of the muricid radula. Fil: Herbert, Gregory M.. University of South Florida; Estados Unidos Fil: Pío, María José. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"; Argentina Fil: Pastorino, Roberto Santiago Guido. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"; Argentina Fil: Harasewych, M. G.. Smithsonian Institution; Estados Unidos Fil: Kantor, Yuri I.. Russian Academy of Sciences; Rusia Fil: Lamy, Dominique. Université de Perpignan; Francia. Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique; Francia. École Pratique des Hautes Études Sorbonne; Francia Fil: Pointier, Jean-Pierre. Université de Perpignan; Francia. Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique; Francia. École Pratique des Hautes Études Sorbonne; Francia

Recent deep‐sea explorations in the South Pacific have documented around New Caledonia the most diverse fauna of gastropods of the family Volutomitridae anywhere in the world. Fourteen species (nine new, two remaining unnamed) are recorded, all essentially confined to the 250–750 m depth range. The high number of species in the New Caledonia region does not appear to be an effect of sampling intensity, but appears to result from four factors: regional spatial heterogeneity, frequency of hard substrates, syntopy, and a historical heritage shared with Australia and New Zealand, which until now ranked as the major centre of volutomitrid diversity. In the New Caledonia region, volutomitrids show a marked preference for hard bottoms and up to three species may co‐occur in the same dredge haul. Many species appear to have extremely narrow geographical distributions within the region (e.g. a single seamount or a single submerged plateau); conversely, Microvoluta joloensis, the only non‐endemic volutomit...

Stomach anatomy of 15 species from five families of Buccinoidea has been examined. Stomach anatomy does not depend upon diet, but reflects phylogenetic relationships. Therefore, a combination of stomach characters [presence or absence of the posterior mixing area; presence and degree of development of longitudinal fold(s), separating gastric chamber into ventral and dorsal channels; presence and degree of development of lateral sulcus; position of the digestive gland ducts, and others] allows discrimination of all families of Buccinoidea, except for the closely related Buccinidae and Buccinulidae. The current familial position of the genera Clea, Busycon and Nassaria is questioned from evidence of stomach anatomy. The function of the neogastropod stomach is discussed, with emphasis on food absorption. Observations on the ciliary currents in the stomachs of live specimens suggest that food absorption occurs through the stomach walls, rather than in the tubules of the digestive gland.

Buccinum thermophilum new species, is described from abyssal depths of the Endeavour Vent Field, a portion of the Juan de Fuca Ridge in the northeastern Pacific. The new species is provisionally assigned to the subgenus Viridibuccinum Golikov and Sirenko, 1988, primarily on the basis of its conchological similarities with some of the species included in this subgenus, especially its type species B. (V.) viridum Dall, 1890. The anatomy of this new species is similar in most respects to that of the few species of Buccininae for which the anatomy is known. Buccinum thermophilum most closely resembles B. viridum, B. rondinum Dall, 1919, and, to a much lesser extent, Buccinum diplodetum Dall, 1907, which has a similar geographic and bathymetric range.

Examination of the holotype of Sipho gaini Lamy, 1910, attributed by recent authors to the genus Chlanidota (Buccinulidae), revealed that this species belongs to the genus Belaturricula and is a senior synonym of Belaturricula antarctica Dell, 1990. A redescription of the shell, anterior alimentary system, and radular morphology of Belaturricula gaini is provided. The genus Belaturricula is transferred to the family Conidae (sensu Taylor et al. 1993) on the basis of its radula, which is composed of hollow marginal teeth. The presence of a large shell, prominent operculum, acinous salivary glands, radular teeth with narrow bases in B. gaini, as well as the absence of buccal lips and rhyncodeal introvert, all indicate affinities with the conid subfamily Clathurellinae. Because the radula of Pontiothauma ergata Hedley (1916) is nearly indistinguishable from that of Belaturricula gaini, we reassign Hedley's species to the genus Belaturricula as Belaturricula ergata (Hedley, 1916).

International audience; The radular anatomy and evolution of the radular apparatus in predatory marine gastropods, superfamily Conoidea, is reconstructed on the basis of a molecular phylogeny, based on three mitochondrial genes (COI, 12S and 16S) for 101 species. A unique feeding mechanism involving use of individual marginal radular teeth at the proboscis tip for stabbing and envenomation of prey at the proboscis tip appeared at the earliest stages of evolution of the group. The initial major evolutionary event in Conoidea was the divergence to two main branches. One is characterized by mostly hypodermic marginal teeth and absence of an odontophore, while the other possesses a radula with primarily duplex marginal teeth, a strong subradular membrane and retains a fully functional odontophore. The radular types that have previously been considered most ancestral, "prototypic" for the group (flat marginal teeth; multicuspid lateral teeth of Drilliidae; solid recurved teeth of Pseudomelatoma and Duplicaria), were found to be derived conditions. Solid recurved teeth appeared twice, independently, in Conoidea-in Pseudomelatomidae and Terebridae. The Terebridae, the sister group of Turridae, are characterized by very high radular variability, and the transformation of the marginal radular teeth within this single clade repeats the evolution of the radular apparatus across the entire Conoidea.

International audience; The hyperdiverse group of venomous Conoidea has eluded attempts to construct a robust and stable classification owing to the absence of a robust and stable phylogenetic framework. New molecular data have greatly enhanced our understanding of conoidean evolution, allowing the construction of a new family-level classification. This expanding framework has also allowed the discovery of several independent lineages that merit recognition at family rank. One of these, based on seven specimens collected over more than 20 years from deep waters off New Caledonia, represents an unique, monotypic lineage closely related to Mitromorphidae, which we here name Bouchetaiidae, fam. nov. This new lineage bears a unique combination of teleoconch, protoconch and anatomical characters previously unknown within the Conoidea, including a translucent, fusiform shell with sculpture of strong axial ribs crossed by spiral cords, a multi-spiral protoconch of only 2.5 whorls with punctate sculpture, hypodermic marginal teeth, and a multi-layered venom bulb with two layers of muscle separated by connective tissue. This unique lineage may represent the sole survivor of a previously more diverse clade, or is simply one of many unique taxa that has arisen among the isolated sea mounts off New Caledonia.

A new genus-level classification of the Conoidea is presented, based on the molecular phylogeny of Puillandre et al. in the accompanying paper. Fifteen lineages are recognized and ranked as families to facilitate continuity in the treatment of the names Conidae (for 'cones') and Terebridae in their traditional usage. The hitherto polyphyletic 'Turridae' is now resolved as 13 monophyletic families, in which the 358 currently recognized genera and subgenera are placed, or tentatively allocated: Conorbidae (2 (sub) genera), Borsoniidae (34), Clathurellidae (21), Mitromorphidae (8), Mangeliidae (60), Raphitomidae (71), Cochlespiridae (9), Drilliidae (34), Pseudomelatomidae (=Crassispiridae) (59), Clavatulidae (14), Horaiclavidae new family (28), Turridae s. s. (16) and Strictispiridae (2). A diagnosis with description of the shell and radulae is provided for each of these families.

The superfamily Conoidea constitutes one of the most diverse and taxonomically challenging groups among marine molluscs. Classifications based on shell or radular characters are highly contradictory and disputed. Whereas the monophyly of the Conidae and Terebridae has not been challenged, the other constituents of the superfamily are placed in a ‘trash’ group, the turrids, the non-monophyly of which has been demonstrated by anatomical and molecular evidence. We present here a new molecular phylogeny based on a total of 102 conoidean genera (87 ‘turrids’, 5 cones and 10 terebrids) and three mitochondrial genes [cytochrome oxidase I (COI), 12S rRNA and 16S rRNA]. The resulting tree recognizes 14 clades. When the Conidae (Conus s.l.) and Terebridae are ranked as families for consistency of usage, the ‘turrids’ must be split into 12 families of comparable rank. A new genuslevel classification of the Conoidea is published in an accompanying paper.