Rimpellidae

Rimpellidae is a taxonomic family of marine gastropod mollusks. The group is primarily known from the fossil record, with some reports of living representatives that have not been widely accepted. The name derives from the genus on which the family is based in many classifications.

Members are small to medium-sized snails with shells that are variably elongated; sculpture includes fine radial and spiral elements; the aperture is typically narrow with a short to moderately long siphonal canal. The animals are presumed to be benthic marine gastropods living on soft sediments or among shell debris. Diet and precise behavior are poorly known due to limited material.

Rimpellidae has been subject to taxonomic revision. In some schemes it is placed within Caenogastropoda and elsewhere treated as incertae sedis or as a subfamily within a larger family. The validity of the family and the relationships of its constituent genera remain debated among malacologists.

The group's fossil record indicates a broad but patchy temporal and geographic distribution, with remains found in several fossil-bearing basins. The earliest records may date to the Mesozoic, with later occurrences into the Cenozoic in some regions.

Genera assigned to Rimpellidae vary by source, reflecting ongoing taxonomic revision and differing methodological approaches in malacology. Further study, particularly of skeletal morphology and, where possible, soft anatomy or molecular data from living representatives, is expected to clarify the family's status and relationships within marine gastropods.