Triggerfish
Balistoides viridescens
The titan triggerfish, also called the giant or moustache triggerfish, is a large triggerfish of lagoons and reefs down to about 50 m (160 ft) across most of the Indo-Pacific, though it does not occur in Hawaii. Reaching up to 75 centimetres (30 in) long, it is the largest triggerfish within its range.
Family
Balistidae
Avg Size
30-75 cm
Behaviour
The titan triggerfish is active by day and lives alone. It feeds on sea urchins, molluscs, crustaceans, tube worms and coral, often flipping over rocks, stirring up sand and snapping off pieces of branching coral. Smaller fish frequently trail it to pick off the detritus and tiny organisms it disturbs. It is among the fish able to hunt and eat the crown-of-thorns starfish, and it is known to behave aggressively toward other fish that enter its territory.
Where & When to See It
Turft El Shahed
Abu Kifan
Abu Hashish
Erg Sabina
Carnatic
Banana Reef
Abu Ramada North
Giannis D
El Mina Wreck
Erg Abu Ramada
Big Giftun
Salem Express
Bluff Point
Shaab Abu Nugar
Careless Reef
Shaab Eissa
Shaab El Erg
Shaab Eshta
Shaab Petra
Shaab Sabina
Hamda
Shabrur Um Gamar
Ras Disha
Shag Rock (Kingston)
Chrisoula K
Kimon M
Abu Ramada South
Soma Bay Garden
El Erug
Siyul Kebira
Small Giftun
The Barge at Bluff Point
The Ulysses
Turtle Reef
Umm Gamar North
Umm Gamar South
Thistlegorm
El Fanadir
Belina Wreck
Panorama Reef
Erg Somaya
Fury Shoals
Gordon Reef
Gota Abu Ramada
Gota Soraya
Jackson Reef
Kormoran
Laguna Reef
Little Brother Island
Numidia
Pinky Wall
Ras Abu Helal
Ras Nasrani
Ras Um Sid
Rocky Island
Sha'ab Samadai (Dolphin House)
Shaab Maksur
Shark & Yolanda Reef
The Alternatives
The Islands
White Knight
Woodhouse Reef
Abu Dabbab
Sodfa
Abu Ghalawa
Abu Nuhas
Aida
Amphoras
Big Brother Island
Dunraven (Beacon Rock)
El Fanous West
Elphinstone
Far Garden
Fiddle Garden
Gota Kebir
Habili Ali
Habili Gaffar
Jackfish Alley
Middle Garden
Near Garden
North Gabr El Bint
Paradise
Ras Bob
Ras Burg
Ras Ghamila
Ras Ghozlani
Ras Katy
Ras Zaatar
Sha'ab Sharm
Shaab Claudia
Shaab Sataya
Shark Observatory
Shark's Bay
Small Crack
Temple
Thomas Reef
Tower
Turtle Bay
Umm Kharalim
Zabargad Island
Daedalus Reef
Eel Garden
Eel Gardens