Orthalicoidea

Orthalicoidea is a superfamily of air-breathing land snails, terrestrial gastropod mollusks in the infraorder Orthalicoidei of the suborder Helicina.^[2]

Orthalicoidea
A large orthalicid from eastern Peru (probably of genus Sultana), recovering from substantial shell damage.
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
Superorder:	Eupulmonata
Order:	Stylommatophora
Suborder:	Helicina
Superfamily:	Orthalicoidea Albers, 1860
Families
See text
Diversity[1]
~1750 taxon names are available

Distribution

The Orthalicoidea is a dominant faunal element in the Neotropics, but also has a number of genera with a Gondwanan distribution.^[1]

Taxonomy

2005 taxonomy

This taxonomy, as accepted by Bouchet & Rocroi, was based on the study by Nordsieck, published in 1986,^[3] and the classification as formulated by Schileyko in 1999.^[4] However Bouchet & Rocroi diverged from this classification in uniting the families Bulimulidae and Orthalacidae. They also considered the family Placostylidae as a distinct family from Orthalicidae, and the family Coelociontidae a distinct family from Urocoptidae. However, the position of the families Megaspiridae and Grangerellidae is doubtful.^[5]

The following seven families have been recognized in the taxonomy of Bouchet & Rocroi (2005):

• Family Cerionidae Pilsbry, 1901
• Family Coelociontidae Iredale, 1937
• † Family Grangerellidae Russell, 1931
• Family Megaspiridae Pilsbry, 1904
• Family Orthalicidae Albers, 1860
• Family Placostylidae Pilsbry, 1946
• Family Urocoptidae Pilsbry, 1898 (1868)
• Vidaliellidae H. Nordsieck, 1986 †

2008 taxonomy

Uit de Weerd moved two families Urocoptidae and Cerionidae to newly established superfamily Urocoptoidea based on molecular phylogeny research in 2008.^[6]

2009 taxonomy

Family Prestonellidae van Bruggen, 1978 - A study by Herbert and Mitchell, published in 2009, places this enigmatic family, of which the phylogenetic relationships were previously unknown, in the Gondwanan superfamily Orthalicoidea,^[7] while it was previously tentatively placed as a synonym of Aillyidae.^[5]

2010 taxonomy

Breure et al. (2010)^[8] moved Prestonella and Bothriembryon to Placostylidae and they elevated Bulimulinae to Bulimulidae, Odontostomini to Odontostomidae, Amphibuliminae to Amphibulimidae.^[8] They also removed Coelociontidae from Orthalicoidea.^[8]

2012 taxonomy

Breure & Romero (2012)^[9] confirmed previous results from 2010, additionally they elevated Simpulopsini to Simpulopsidae, renamed Placostylidae to Bothriembryontidae.^[9] Therefore, there are recognized seven extant^[9] families and one extinct^[5] family within Orthalicoidea:

• Amphibulimidae P. Fischer, 1873
• Bothriembryontidae Iredale, 1937
• Bulimulidae Tryon, 1867
• † Grangerellidae Russell, 1931
• Megaspiridae Pilsbry, 1904
• Odontostomidae Pilsbry & Vanatta, 1898
• Orthalicidae Albers, 1860
• Simpulopsidae Schileyko, 1999
• † Vidaliellidae H. Nordsieck, 1986