All fish / Balistidae

Titan Triggerfish

Balistoides viridescens

Also known as titan trigger, giant triggerfish, moustache triggerfish, mustache triggerfish, blue-finned triggerfish, green triggerfish, ปลาวัวไททัน, ikan jebong, ゴマモンガラ, ikan pakol, trigger raksasa, 褐拟鳞鲀

This is the largest reef triggerfish, with a deep body, a dark mottled olive and yellow pattern, and a dark band across the snout like a moustache. It is kept only rarely, mostly by public aquariums and owners of very large fish-only systems who want a bold, intelligent centrepiece fish.

Care at a glance

Care level

Hard

Temperament

Aggressive

Adult size

50 cm

Temperature

24 to 28 °C

pH

8.1 to 8.4

Smallest tank

2000 litres

Keep as

Keep singly

Diet

Carnivore: crustaceans, molluscs, sea urchins, squid, shellfish and quality marine pellets

Swims

Middle of the tank

Lifespan

10 to 20 years

Water

Marine (saltwater)

Wild range

Indo-Pacific and Red Sea, from East Africa to the Line Islands and Tuamotus

Breeding

In the wild pairs lay eggs in a crater dug in sand, and the female guards the nest fiercely. It has not been bred in home aquariums.

Good to know

It grows to around 75 cm, bites hard and is aggressive to tankmates and divers, and it will eat invertebrates and break rockwork, so it is not suitable for reef tanks. Its flesh has been linked to ciguatera poisoning.