Belomitridae, Kantor & Puillandre & Rivasseau & Bouchet, 2012

Kantor, Yuri I., Puillandre, Nicolas, Rivasseau, Audrey & Bouchet, Philippe, 2012, 3496, Zootaxa 3496, pp. 1-64 : 9-10

Family Belomitridae new family

Type genus: Belomitra P. Fischer, 1883

Diagnosis: Shell small to large, turriform, with elevated spire and short siphonal canal. Subsutural ramp normally well pronounced. Protoconch paucispiral. Shell sculpture pronounced, with axial ribs present at least on spire whorls, and spiral cords, some of which form knobs at their intersection with axial ribs. Columella sometimes with weak plaits. Operculum present or absent, when present with terminal nucleus. Radula with three teeth in a row; rachidian multicuspid; lateral teeth with very long narrow base and two small cusps closer to tip. Proboscis medium-long to long. Paired salivary glands, very large gland of Leiblein, well defined valve of Leiblein. Stomach without caecum.

Remarks: Shells of Belomitra ( Figs. 3–4) superficially resemble those in several other neogastropod families, notably Raphitomidae and Mitridae ( Fig. 4H–J). Among Buccinoidea , no genus has a shell similar enough to be confused with Belomitra . The shape of the lateral teeth of Belomitridae , with their very long bases, bears resemblance to that in some species of Prosiphonini Powell, 1951, an endemic Antarctic buccinid tribe, the shells of which however can be readily distinguished by being generally much smaller (usually less than 10 mm in length), lacking a defined subsutural ramp, and being sculptured with fewer, dominating strong cords and a lack of pronounced axial elements.