# Ficidae

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{{Short description|Family of gastropods}}
{{Automatic taxobox
| image = Ficus gracilis.jpg
| image_caption = The shell of ''[Ficus gracilis](/source/Ficus_gracilis)''
| parent_authority = [Meek](/source/Meek), 1864 (1840)
| taxon = Ficidae
| authority = [Meek](/source/Meek), 1864 (1840)
| synonyms = 
Pyrullinae <small>Swainson, 1840</small><br/>
Sycotypidae <small>Gray, 1853</small><br/>
Ficulidae <small>[Carpenter](/source/Phillip_Pearsall_Carpenter), 1857</small><br/>
Thalassocyonidae <small>F. Riedel, 1895</small>.
}}

'''Ficidae''', [common name](/source/common_name) the '''fig shells''', are a [family](/source/Family_(taxonomy)) of medium to large [marine](/source/marine_(ocean)) [gastropod](/source/gastropod)s. It is the only family in the superfamily '''Ficoidea'''.

According to [taxonomy of the Gastropoda by Bouchet & Rocroi (2005)](/source/Taxonomy_of_the_Gastropoda_(Bouchet_%26_Rocroi%2C_2005)) the family Ficidae has no subfamilies.

The [shells](/source/gastropod_shell) of these snails are shaped rather like [fig](/source/ficus)s or [pear](/source/pear)s, hence the common name.

The Ficidae were previously included in the Tonnaceae (now [Tonnoidea](/source/Tonnoidea)) along with the [Tonnidae](/source/Tonnidae) and [Cassididae](/source/Cassididae).<ref>[Keen, A.Myra](/source/A._Myra_Keen) 1958; Sea Shells of Tropical West America, Stanford University Press.</ref><ref>Moore, Lalicker, and Fischer 1952; Invertebrate Fossils, McGraw-Hill Book.</ref>

==Distribution==
The family is found worldwide, mostly in [tropical](/source/tropical) and [subtropical](/source/subtropical) [silt](/source/silt) and [mud](/source/mud) covered [neritic zone](/source/neritic_zone)s.

==Shell description==
The shells of species in the Ficidae are thin but strong.  They have a large [aperture](/source/aperture_(mollusc)) and a long [siphonal canal](/source/siphonal_canal), but an extremely low [spire](/source/spire_(mollusc)) which does not protrude above the outline of the [body whorl](/source/body_whorl).

Fig shells very often have subdued spiral [ribbing](/source/sculpture_(mollusc)), and are subtly patterned in shades of very pale brown and [beige](/source/beige).

== Genera ==
Genera within the family Ficidae include:
* ''[Ficus](/source/Ficus_(gastropod))'' [Röding](/source/Peter_Friedrich_R%C3%B6ding), 1798<ref>WoRMS (2009). ''Ficus'' Röding, 1798. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=205605 on 2010-05-20</ref>
* † ''[Austroficopsis](/source/Austroficopsis)'' Stilwell & Zinsmeister, 1992<ref>[https://paleobiodb.org/classic/checkTaxonInfo?taxon_no=103209 "''Austroficopsis''"]. [The Paleobiology Database](/source/The_Paleobiology_Database), accessed 20 May 2010.</ref>
* † ''[Ficopsis](/source/Ficopsis)'' Conrad, 1866<ref>[https://paleobiodb.org/classic/checkTaxonInfo?taxon_no=9855 "''Ficopsis''"]. [The Paleobiology Database](/source/The_Paleobiology_Database), accessed 20 May 2010.</ref>
* † ''[Fusoficula](/source/Fusoficula)''<ref>[https://paleobiodb.org/classic/checkTaxonInfo?taxon_no=9874 "''Fusoficula''"]. [The Paleobiology Database](/source/The_Paleobiology_Database), accessed 20 May 2010.</ref>
* † ''[Gonysycon](/source/Gonysycon)''<ref>[https://paleobiodb.org/classic/checkTaxonInfo?taxon_no=9912 "''Gonysycon''"]. [The Paleobiology Database](/source/The_Paleobiology_Database), accessed 20 May 2010.</ref>
* ''[Thalassocyon](/source/Thalassocyon)'' Barnard, 1960<ref>WoRMS (2010). ''Thalassocyon'' Barnard, 1960. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=447827 on 2010-05-20</ref>
;Genera brought into synonymy:
* ''Ficula'' Swainson, 1835 : synonym of Ficus Röding, 1798
* ''Pirula'' Montfort, 1810 : synonym of  Ficus Röding, 1798
* ''Pyrula'' Lamarck, 1799 : synonym of  Ficus Röding, 1798
* ''Sycotypus'' Gray, 1847 : synonym of  Ficus Röding, 1798

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
{{Commons category|Ficidae}}
* [Powell A. W. B.](/source/Arthur_William_Baden_Powell), ''New Zealand Mollusca'', [William Collins Publishers Ltd](/source/HarperCollins), Auckland, New Zealand 1979 {{ISBN|0-00-216906-1}}
* [https://pubs.usgs.gov/pp/0642/report.pdf Miocene Gastropods and Biostratigraphy of the Kern River Area, California; United States Geological Survey Professional Paper 642] {{PD-notice}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q827710}}
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Category:Ficidae

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Ficidae](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ficidae) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ficidae?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.