Common otter clam

Lutraria lutraria

Molluscs
IUCN: Not evaluated

Usual depth0–10 m
Water temperature9–21 °C
Best monthsApril and May
How commonCommon

Photo credit: (c) Jan Johan ter Poorten, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · CC BY-SA · iNaturalist

About this species

Lutraria lutraria is a species of large marine bivalve mollusc in the family Mactridae. Its common names include the otter shell and the common otter shell. It occurs in coastal regions of the north east Atlantic Ocean where it lives buried in the sand.

Text from the Wikipedia article “Lutraria lutraria”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article

Where and when

Where it has been recorded

Worldwide

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Best months

Worldwide (open data)

January: 378 records
February: 480 records
March: 627 records
April: 1,487 records
May: 1,152 records
June: 624 records
July: 544 records
August: 376 records
September: 409 records
October: 356 records
November: 338 records
December: 402 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 0–10 m · Deepest record: 111 m

0–10 m: 2,402 records
10–20 m: 151 records
20–30 m: 59 records
30–40 m: 28 records
40–50 m: 18 records
50–60 m: 4 records
60–70 m: 3 records
70–80 m: 0 records
80–90 m: 1 records
90–100 m: 0 records
100–110 m: 0 records
110–120 m: 2 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 9–21 °C

8–10 °C: 2 records
10–12 °C: 107 records
12–14 °C: 160 records
14–16 °C: 2 records
16–18 °C: 0 records
18–20 °C: 0 records
20–22 °C: 4 records

Photos

(c) Lmbuga, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · CC BY-SA · iNaturalist
no rights reserved, uploaded by Stephen James McWilliam · CC0 1.0 · iNaturalist
no rights reserved, uploaded by Stephen James McWilliam · CC0 1.0 · iNaturalist
no rights reserved · CC0 1.0 · iNaturalist
no rights reserved · CC0 1.0 · iNaturalist
(c) Susan Marley, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
no rights reserved · CC0 1.0 · iNaturalist

Names and classification

English: Common otter clam, Common otter shell, Otter shell, common otter clam, common otter shell, otter shell, Otter shell, Common otter shell

Names in 3 more languages

German: Ottermuschel
Spanish: arola
French: lacogne, lutraire

Other scientific names: Chama magna, Lutraria (Lutraria) lutraria, Lutraria elliptica, Lutraria primipara, Lutraria solida, Lutraria vulgaris, Mya lutraria

Similar species

Lutraria rhynchaena
Reddish Mactra
Austromactra rufescens
Diamond Clam
Crassula aequilatera
Australian Mactra
Mactra australis
Chinese surf clam
Mactra chinensis
Mactra pura

Sources and credits

Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).

Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
7,455 open-data records from 1869 to 2025.
Species data updated November 4, 2026.

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