Titan Triggerfish

Balistoides viridescens

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Tetraodontiformes
Family: Balistidae
Genus: Balistoides
Species: Balistoides viridescens

The titan triggerfish (Balistoides viridescens) is the largest reef triggerfish, famous for fiercely guarding its nest. Its body is olive-green with a dark scaled pattern and a pale moustache-like band.

It grows to about 75 cm and crushes sea urchins, crabs and molluscs with powerful teeth. During nesting season, it defends a cone-shaped territory and may charge and bite divers who enter it; swim away horizontally rather than upward.

In the Philippines it is found on reefs and sandy patches, where it can often be seen digging for food.

Photo: R Vasconcellos, CC BY 4.0, via iNaturalist