The Turritellidae Family includes 148 species comprising 4 subfamilies (Turritellinae (21 genus), Protominae (1), Pareorinae (1), Orectospirinae (1))
and 20 genus (Turritella (72 species), Colpospira (23), Tachyrhynchus (8), Vermicularia (7), Stiracolpus (7), Mesalia (5), ...)

Phylum      : Mollusca
 Class       : ⤷Gastropoda 
  Subclass    : ⤷Caenogastropoda 
   Order       : ⤷Caenogastropoda incertae sedis 
    Superfamily : ⤷Cerithioidea 
     Family      : ⤷Turritellidae

Common name : tower shell

Aspect : slender shells that resemble screws, elongated, high-spired with many (10 to 20) rather convex whorls; clear hollow suture line; small and rounded aperture; thin operculum

Feeding : filtration of microorganisms in suspension (detritus, plankton, and organic matter) or deposit feeders; a relatively uncommon trait among gastropods but typical in bivalves

Environment : inhabit shallow coastal marine and estuarine environments worldwide in sandy or muddy substrates; from shallow intertidal zones to continental shelf depths