Parthenina | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Mollusca |
Class: | Gastropoda |
(unranked): | clade Heterobranchia informal group Lower Heterobranchia |
Superfamily: | Pyramidelloidea |
Family: | Pyramidellidae |
Subfamily: | Chrysallidinae |
Genus: | Parthenina Bucquoy, Dautzenberg & Dollfus, 1883[1] |
Species | |
See text. |
Parthenina is a genus of very small sea snails, pyramidellid gastropod mollusks or micromollusks. This genus is currently placed in the subfamily Chrysallidinae of the family Odostomiidae. The name Parthenia was created by Lowe in 1840 for the species in this group, but had to be replaced since it was preoccupied by a name for a group of dipterans described by Roubineau-Desvoidy in 1830.
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In the original description Bucquoy, Dautzenberg & Dollfus (1833)[1] states (in English translation) that Partnenina is a type of Odostomia with a mesh-like surface or woth longitudinal ridges. Between these ridges there are series of spiral ridges. Many of the European species in the genus have for a long time been wrongly placed in the genus Chrysallida, but Schander et al. (2003)[2] showed that they should indeed be placed in the genus Parthenina. This separation was followed by Pimenta et al. (2009)[3] for Brazilian species.
The genus is parasitic, manly on serpulid polychaete worms. They are known to have spermatophores.[4]
Species within the genus Parthenina include: