Discussion. Vent and seep mussels of the genera Bathymodiolus, Gigantidas and Tamu traditionally have been referred to a subfamily Bathymodiolinae Kenk and Wilson, 1985 (e.g. Cosel and Janssen 2008), although as indicated by Samadi et al. (2007), on molecular evidence the group is “robustly rooted within a monophyletic group that includes the species Modiolus modiolus...”, i.e. subfamily Modiolinae Keen, 1958. Thus, Bathymodiolinae would appear to be a grade of Modiolinae comprising several clades, each probably independently derived from small wood-associated ancestors (Distel 2000; Fujita et al. 2009). Re-evaluation of the higher classification of mytilids is not our intention, and we consider it appropriate and convenient to refer to these mussels as bathymodiolines.