Mactra stultorum

The rayed trough shell (Mactra stultorum, previously sometimes known as Mactra corallina), is a species of edible saltwater clam, a marine bivalve mollusc in the family Mactridae, the trough shells.

Mactra stultorum
Right valve of Mactra stultorum
Left valve of Mactra stultorum
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Bivalvia
Order:	Venerida
Family:	Mactridae
Subfamily:	Mactrinae
Genus:	Mactra
Species:	M. stultorum
Binomial name
Mactra stultorum (Linnaeus, 1758)
Synonyms
Cardium stultorum Linnaeus, 1758 Cardium corallinum Linnaeus, 1758 Mactra corallina (Linnaeus, 1758)

Distribution

Seashells washed up on the beach in Valencia, Spain; nearly all are single valves of bivalve mollusks, mostly of Mactra corallina

This species lives in the Black Sea, the Mediterranean coasts, and the west coast of Europe, from Norway to the Iberian Peninsula, and south to Senegal.

Habitat

This bivalve lives on sandy (rarely soft) bottoms at depths of between 5 and 30 m, although the shell is very often found on beaches, where it has been cast up by wave action.

Shell description

This species has a very thin and delicate shell, which has concentric growth lines and sometimes also has colored radiating bands, hence its common name, the rayed trough shell. The shell interior is white.

• 
  var. atlantica
  Right valve
• 
  var. atlantica
  Left valve
• 
  var. cinerea
  Right valve
• 
  var. cinerea
  Left valve
• 
  var. lignaria
  Right valve
• 
  var. lignaria
  Left valve

Human use

This species is sometimes sold in markets as a food item.