Cymbuliidae
Encyclopedia
Cymbuliidae is a family of pelagic sea snail
Sea snail
Sea snail is a common name for those snails that normally live in saltwater, marine gastropod molluscs....

s or "sea butterflies", 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 mollusks in the superfamily Cymbulioidea
Cymbulioidea
Cymbulioidea is a taxonomic superfamily of pelagic "sea butterflies". These are holoplanktonic opisthobranch molluscs in the clade Thecosomata.-Anatomy:...

.

Description

Instead of an external calcareous shell, they possess a pseudoconch, consisting of conchioline, a cartilaginous tissue. The mantle
Mantle (mollusc)
The mantle is a significant part of the anatomy of molluscs: it is the dorsal body wall which covers the visceral mass and usually protrudes in the form of flaps well beyond the visceral mass itself.In many, but by no means all, species of molluscs, the epidermis of the mantle secretes...

 and the gill have disappeared as well. They breathe through the skin. They prefer warm water.

Distribution

In Europe, they can only be found in the Mediterranean.

Subfamilies

The family Cymbuliidae consists of two following subfamilies (according to the taxonomy of the Gastropoda by Bouchet & Rocroi, 2005
Taxonomy of the Gastropoda (Bouchet & Rocroi, 2005)
The taxonomy of the Gastropoda as it was revised by Philippe Bouchet and Jean-Pierre Rocroi is currently the most up-to-date overall system for classifying gastropod mollusks...

):
  • subfamily Cymbuliinae Gray, 1840
  • subfamily Glebinae van der Spoel, 1976

Genera

Genera within the family Cymbuliidae include:

subfamily Cymbuliinae
  • Cymbulia Péron & Lesueur
    Charles Alexandre Lesueur
    Charles Alexandre Lesueur was a French naturalist, artist and explorer.Pictured here is the oil portrait by Charles Willson Peale of Charles-Alexandre Lesueur...

    , 1810 - type genus of the family Cymbuliidae

    • Cymbulia parvidentata Pelseneer
      Paul Pelseneer
      Jean Paul Louis Pelseneer was a Belgian malacologist, morphologist, ethologist and phylogenist....

      , 1888 - Distribution: Bermuda, Oceanic. Length: 35 mm.
    • Cymbulia peronii Lamarck, 1819 - Distribution: Florida, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Oceanic. Length: 65 mm.
    • Cymbulia sibogae Tesch, 1903 - Distribution: Brazil, Argentina, Oceanic. Length: 24 mm.

  • Corolla
    Corolla (gastropod)
    Corolla is a genus of pelagic "sea butterflies". These are holoplanktonic opisthobranch molluscs belonging to the family Cymbuliidae. They are preyed upon by the gymnosome pteropods of the genus Cliopsis. -Species:Species within this genus include:...

    Dall, 1871


subfamily Glebinae
  • Gleba Forsskål
    Peter Forsskål
    Peter Forsskål, sometimes spelled Pehr Forsskål, Peter Forskaol, Petrus Forskål or Pehr Forsskåhl, was a Swedish explorer, orientalist, naturalist and an apostle of Carl Linnaeus.-Early life:...

    , 1776 - type genus of the subfamily Glebinae

    • Gleba chrysosticta Troschel, 1854
    • Gleba cordata
      Gleba cordata
      Gleba cordata is a species of sea butterfly, a floating and swimming sea snail or sea slug, a pelagic marine gastropod mollusk in the family Cymbuliidae....

      Forskål, 1776 - Distribution: Florida, Bermuda, Oceanic. Length: 45 mm.
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