Mactra stultorum

Mactra stultorum
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Bivalvia
Subclass:	Heterodonta
Order:	Venerida
Superfamily:	Mactroidea
Family:	Mactridae
Genus:	Mactra
Species:	M. stultorum
Binomial name
	Mactra stultorum; (Linnaeus, 1758)
Synonyms
	Cardium stultorum Linnaeus, 1758; Cardium corallinum Linnaeus, 1758; Mactra corallina (Linnaeus, 1758);

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.

Distribution

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

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

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

One valve of Mactra stultorum from Wales

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.

Human use

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

References

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