​Any Red Sea diver will have encountered colorful triggerfish along coral reefs, and some divers will have experienced the painful bite of their huge teeth if they get too close to their nesting grounds. Now, Ph.D. student Matthew Tietbohl and colleagues at KAUST report a peculiar feeding strategy by a titan triggerfish that highlights their innate ability to learn and adapt.

Tietbohl and his colleagues were on Mar Mar island in the south central Red Sea looking for signs of turtle nesting when they saw a titan triggerfish come up on to the shoreline and attack, and eventually grab, a Red Sea ghost crab. Most interesting was that the triggerfish partially beached itself in shallow water for the first attack, a hunting behavior that has not been previously reported in any fish belonging to the order Tetraodontiformes, which comprises 350 coral reef species, including triggerfish. Several subsequent attacks ensued in very shallow water, without beaching, with the fish slowly approaching the crab and then rushing at it horizontally. The fish finally grabbed the crab in several centimeters of water and dragged it into deeper water, where it was eaten.

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Image: Triggerfish have a diverse range of feeding behaviors that allow them to diversify their prey.
© 2020 KAUST; Matthew Tietbohl