Family LAEVIDENTALIIDAE
Compiler and date details
Kevin L. Lamprell, Queensland Museum, Brisbane, Australia John M. Healy, Center for Marine Studies, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
Introduction
The Laevidentaliidae are reasonably well represented in Australian waters, with twelve recorded species (Lamprell & Healy 1998).
Laevidentaliids are characterised by glossy, white shells which generally lack all traces of longitudinal sculpture (striae present apically in some species) and never have a contracted or strongly compressed aperture. Although it has been suggested that laevidentaliids can be distinguished by radular characteristics (rectangular to polygonal rachidian tooth, long laterals and slender, almost straight marginals—Boss 1982; Steiner 1992), Lamprell & Healy (1998) found strong similarities between laevidentaliid and dentaliid radulae, and substantial differences between certain species of Laevidentalium.
Most genera or subgenera included by Palmer (1974) in his original concept of the family have subsequently been removed to separate families (Rhabdus to Rhabdidae; Calliodentalium to Calliodentaliidae; Fustiaria to Fustiariidae; Omniglypta and Plagioglypta to Omniglyptidae or Dentaliidae; Gadilina and Episiphon to Gadilinidae; Bathoxiphus to order Gadilida, family Entalinidae—see Chistikov 1982a, 1982b; Steiner 1991, 1992; Scarabino 1995). The only extant genus now included in the Laevidentaliidae is Laevidentalium sensu stricto (Scarabino 1995), but even the natural status of this genus has been questioned (Lamprell & Healy 1998).
Yoo (1988) assigned three Carboniferous fossil species from New South Wales (two from newly erected genera) to the Laevidentaliidae. His placement of the genus Plagioglypta in the Laevidentaliidae is based on Palmer's (1974) original concept of the family. Plagioglypta has more recently been assigned to the Omniglyptidae (see Steiner 1992) or the Dentaliidae (Scarabino 1995) based on a living Indo-Pacific species. Five fossil species of Laevidentalium have been recorded from the upper Oligocene to the lower Pliocene of South Australia, Tasmania and Victoria (Ludbrook 1956, 1959, 1984).
General References
Boss, K.J. 1982. Mollusca. pp. 945-1166 in Parker, S.P. (ed.). Synopsis and Classification of Living Organisms. New York : McGraw-Hill Book Company Vol. 1. [1164]
Chistikov, S.D. 1982a. The modern Entalinidae (Scaphopoda, Gadilida). Zoologicheskii Zhurnal 61: 671-682 [in Russian]
Chistikov, S.D. 1982b. Modern molluscs of the family Entalinidae (Scaphopoda, Gadilida). Zoologicheskii Zhurnal 61: 1309-1321 [in Russian]
Lamprell, K.L. & Healy, J.M. 1998. A revision of the Scaphopoda from Australian waters (Mollusca). Records of the Australian Museum Suppl. 24: 1-189
Ludbrook, N.H. 1956. The molluscan fauna of the Pliocene strata underlying the Adelaide Plains. Part III — Scaphopoda, Polyplacophora, Gastropoda (Haliotidae to Tornidae). Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia 79: 1-36 pls 1-2
Ludbrook, N.H. 1959. Revision of the Tate molluscan types—Scaphopoda. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia 82: 141-149 pls 1-2
Ludbrook, N.H. 1984. Quaternary molluscs of South Australia. South Australian Department of Mines and Energy, Handbook 9: 1-327
Palmer, C.P. 1974. A supraspecific classification of the scaphopod Mollusca. Veliger 17: 115-123
Steiner, G. 1991. Observations on the anatomy of the scaphopod mantle, and the description of a new family, the Fustiariidae. American Malacological Bulletin 9: 1-20
Steiner, G. 1992. Phylogeny and classification of Scaphopoda. Journal of Molluscan Studies 58: 385-400
Yoo, E.K. 1988. Early Carboniferous Mollusca from Gundy, Upper Hunter, New South Wales. Records of the Australian Museum 40: 233-264
History of changes
| Published | As part of group | Action Date | Action Type | Compiler(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23-Jun-2014 | MODIFIED |