- Description
- The Ceriths are a major family of mainly shallow-water dwellers with more than 200 species, mostly distributed in the tropics. They live in large colonies feeding on mud detritus and decayed algae. Some genera are very small, such as Bittium and Triforis, the latter of which uniquely have sinistral (left coiling) shells. The larger genus, Cerithium, are about 2.5 cm in size. Ceriths, as a family, have a horny operculum showing only a few whorls (paucispiral) according to Abbott & Dance.
- Ceriths share many features in common with Horn Shells, in the Potamididae family, but a hallmark of the Cerithiidae is the dramatically developed anterior notch. Both belong to the same superfamily, Cerithioidea, as does the air-breathing cerith, Pyrazus ebeninus.
- Classification
- Class: Gastropoda
- Clade: Sorbeconcha
- Superfamily: Cerithioidea
- Family: Cerithiidae
- Major Genera
- Genus: Cerithium
- Genus: Gourmya
- Genus: Clypeomorus
- Genus: Rhinoclavis
- Genus: Campanile
Rhinoclavis sinensis (Gmelin, 1791)
Obelisk Vertigus
Cerithium cummingi
Cumming's Cerith
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