Titan Triggerfish

Photo: John Sear · CC BY-NC

Titan triggerfish are ecosystem engineers on South Reef, excavating coral rubble with powerful beaked teeth to access invertebrate prey and in doing so creating microhabitat for smaller species. During nesting season individuals aggressively defend circular nest territories on the sandy bottom and will charge divers who enter their cone-shaped airspace — a behaviour worth understanding before approaching. Their biting action on hard coral is audible underwater and is a characteristic ambient sound of healthy Indo-Pacific reefs.