Survey of the Nassariid Gastropods in the Neogene Paratethys (Mollusca: Caenogastropoda: Buccinoidea)

Nassariidae (Neogastropoda, Buccinoidea) are typical molluscs in the marine and marine-brackish Miocene deposits of the Eurasian Paratethys Sea. Furthermore, they are among the few gastropod taxa that managed to pass the water chemistry crisis at the Badenian/Sarmatian boundary. However, the changed conditions of the Sarmatian led to a severe decline of the Nassariinae whereas the Dorsaninae seem to have occupied the vacant ecological niches formerly filled by Nassariinae and Cylleninae. About 98 species names are available in the literature regarding Nassariinae I REDALE 1916. These refer to Middle Miocene (Badenian) occurrences mainly. Of these only 46 are considered herein to represent valid species. Distinctly less manifold are the Cylleninae B ELLARDI 1882 that are recorded with about 10 species of the genera Cyllene and Cyllenina. The third subfamily Dorsaninae COSSMANN 1901 is represented by the genera Duplicata and Akburunella representing about 45 species. The protoconch morphology of representatives of the three subfamilies is described for the first time, inferences regarding the embryogenesis and larval ecology and systematic implications are discussed. Nassarius jansseni nov. sp., Nassarius schultzi nov. sp. and Duplicata ermanni nov. sp. are introduced. This paper gives a critical overview of most Miocene Paratethyan nassariid gastropods but does not claim to be a revision of this complex group.