Dogtooth Tuna

Photo: Luis P. B. · CC BY-NC

Dogtooth tuna patrol the water column around the Ibo Pinnacles in pairs and small groups, using the current-accelerated water between the towers to ambush the dense schools of fusiliers and small jacks that shelter in the pinnacles' lee. These powerful, fast-swimming pelagics regularly exceed 1.5 metres in length and are among the most impressive fish encounters the Quirimbas offers — their sudden explosive charges through baitfish schools scatter thousands of fish in a silver curtain. The interaction between dogtooth tuna hunting pressure and baitfish schooling behaviour produces some of the most photogenic action sequences in Indian Ocean diving.