Subgenus Cryptomya (Venatomya) Iredale, 1930

Venatomya Iredale, 1930: 403 .

Diagnosis. Hinge with a small tooth-like process in front of resilifer in right valve; pallial sinus variable in size. Type species. Sphenia elliptica A. Adams, 1851 (by original designation).

Remarks. Iredale (1930) erected the genus Venatomya for the Australian Sphenia elliptica A. Adams, 1851, arguing that Hedley’s association with Cryptomya Conrad, 1848, was dubious because “ Cryptomya had been introduced by Conrad for an American shell, not much like ours, which has been well figured by Hedley, …” (p. 403) (cf. Hedley 1913: 275–276, pl. 17, figs. 40–44). Keen (1969) and Lamprell & Stanisic (1998) recognized Venatomya as a valid subgenus characterized by a small tooth-like process in front of the chondrophore in the right valve; the variably sized pallial sinus of Venatomya can obviously not be used to discriminate it from Cryptomya .