Turret Shells of the Turretellidae Family are also known as Tower Shells. They have elongated, narrow, shells that have many whorls. Some of the family members have whorls separate into a corkscrew shape. Turret Shells can be distinguished from other long shells, such as Augers and Miters, by their convex whorls, round aperture, lack of a siphonal canal, and rough, non-lustrous exterior. They have external sculpting that generally follows the whorls and may include ridges, fine line, or a bead-like cord.

Turrets are found in large colonies in shallow water environments over and with mud and sand substrate in the intertidal zone to depths up to 1,930 m (4,900 feet) in all global temperate and tropical seas. They are suspension feeders, using their gill filaments to filter detritus from the water. In turn they are preyed upon by shore birds, crabs, fish, and predatory mollusks. The family has not been well defined and there are less than two hundred known global species of which twelve are found in the coastal waters of Baja.