Titan Triggerfish be aware!

[chillyinCanada]

The titan triggerfish commands respect from scuba divers for good reason

 

[stepfen]

I remember last time I dived in Raja Ampat/Indonesia a local guide who would aim his octopus mouthpiece ready to purge toward whichever titan triggerfish happened to be anywhere around him - just in case.

Apart from this, these guides look fearless hence I'd guess his concern was real.

I am not sure though whether the stream of bubbles would stop an upset triggerfish or just make it even more angry.

 

[chillyinCanada]

I remember last time I dived in Raja Ampat/Indonesia a local guide who would aim his octopus mouthpiece ready to purge toward whichever titan triggerfish happened to be anywhere around him - just in case.

Apart from this, these guides look fearless hence I'd guess his concern was real.

I am not sure though whether the stream of bubbles would stop an upset triggerfish or just make it even more angry.

I'm with you. I can't see why that stream of bubbles would stop a Titan Trigger coming for you. There are some sharks that will back off though.

I used to know a guy who had one hit/bit him in the forehead. Quite the mess and required stitches

 

[Pearlman]

I was on a safety stop once, last few minutes of a dive and the dive master gesticulated frantically pointing a little below and behind me. There was this Titan Triggerfish just a few feet poised to make a lunge - moments later I realized he wasn't interested in me as much as the slightly long end of the weight-belt that I wore that was waving in the water like an eel... it had come off the tummy tuck and flapping freely in the currents. But oh boy my hair stood up in anticipation of an imminent attack that was just seconds away! The way he looked at me was no different from an aggressive street dog - I felt equally threatened as that probable scenario on land. Some quick reactions from me - tucking the weight-belt back in, and some vigorous and perhaps clownish flapping of hands and legs, saved me that day LOL!

Since then I've always thought of them as the street dogs of the ocean. We weren't near their nesting site or any reefs, but out in the big blue so I'm pretty certain he wanted to make a meal of that nylon belt thinking it was food...

Its a memory that always makes me chuckle

 

[chillyinCanada]

I was on a safety stop once, last few minutes of a dive and the dive master gesticulated frantically pointing a little below and behind me. There was this Titan Triggerfish just a few feet poised to make a lunge - moments later I realized he wasn't interested in me as much as the slightly long end of the weight-belt that I wore that was waving in the water like an eel... it had come off the tummy tuck and flapping freely in the currents. But oh boy my hair stood up in anticipation of an imminent attack that was just seconds away! The way he looked at me was no different from an aggressive street dog - I felt equally threatened as that probable scenario on land. Some quick reactions from me - tucking the weight-belt back in, and some vigorous and perhaps clownish flapping of hands and legs, saved me that day LOL!

Since then I've always thought of them as the street dogs of the ocean. We weren't near their nesting site or any reefs, but out in the big blue so I'm pretty certain he wanted to make a meal of that nylon belt thinking it was food...

Its a memory that always makes me chuckle

You may have been closer than you realize because the cone gets wider and wider as it rises up from the nest.

 

[Skulmoski]

??
It's probably just me, but I prefer links that are moderated; that is, there is some sort of an explanation to why I should click on a link. Posting only a link and a title is ....

 

[tridacna]

I saw one destroy a large crab at 60ft at Verde Island in the Philippines. It was unbelievably brutal. There were about 50 other fish rushing in grab crab scraps. It was an unreal scene. The Trigger shredded the crab in about a minute.

 

[Norwegian Cave Diver]

We were in Thailand on the island of Koh Tao for 22 days. Didn’t see the trigger fish. Happened to be looking to the left and suddenly I saw a flash of a fish right at my face. Instinctively I swatted across my face. It was a trigger fish that came up to me and bit the chrome trim ring that fits around the purge button on the reg I was breathing from. I looked and found the trigger fish 20 feet away and my chrome ring drifting down to the sea floor. I looked at the fish and my chrome ring and decided to leave it where it was. The trigger fish wasn’t moving like it was standing guard.

 

[chillyinCanada]

We were in Thailand on the island of Koh Tao for 22 days. Didn’t see the trigger fish. Happened to be looking to the left and suddenly I saw a flash of a fish right at my face. Instinctively I swatted across my face. It was a trigger fish that came up to me and bit the chrome trim ring that fits around the purge button on the reg I was breathing from. I looked and found the trigger fish 20 feet away and my chrome ring drifting down to the sea floor. I looked at the fish and my chrome ring and decided to leave it where it was. The trigger fish wasn’t moving like it was standing guard.

Koh Tao was my first experience with one too. I managed to flail myself out of the cone of danger but that was more accidental than intentional. It's my understanding that quite a few divers have had some bad luck with the Koh Tao triggers.

 

[kelemvor]

??
It's probably just me, but I prefer links that are moderated; that is, there is some sort of an explanation to why I should click on a link. Posting only a link and a title is ....

Since a moderator posted it, isn't it inherently moderated?