The ventral valve is usually the larger, and in many genera, such as Terebratula and Rhynchonella, has a prominent beak or umbo, with a circular or otherwise shaped foramen at or near its extremity, partly bounded by one or two plates, termed a deltidium.
These canals are closed externally and are absent in Rhynchonella, where the amount of calcareous deposit is small.
In Rhynchonella, where there are two pairs of kidneys, the internal opening of the anterior pair is supported by the gastroparietal band and that of the posterior pair by the ileoparietal band.
The two plates may meet in the middle line, and leave only a small oval opening near the centre for the pedicle, as in Rhynchonella; or they may meet only near the base of the delthyrium forming the lower boundary of the circular pedicle-opening, as in Terebratula; or the right plate may remain quite distinct from the left plate, as in Terebratella.
Wood, Cryptopora gnomon Jeff., Rhynchonella (Hemithyris) psittacea Gmel., Crania anomala Mull., and Discinisca atlantica King.