Queen Triggerfish

Photo: Sylvain Le Bris · CC BY-NC

Queen triggerfish are year-round residents at Sandy Island, using their powerful jaws to overturn rubble and expose invertebrate prey including sea urchins, whose long spines they remove with precision. Their vivid blue and yellow colouration makes them one of the most photographed species at the site, and males defend nest territories in the sand flats during summer months. Their feeding behaviour on sea urchins helps prevent urchin population explosions that would otherwise damage the reef structure.