SCUBA News 284
(ISSN 1476-8011)
March 2024

Welcome to March's SCUBA News. Our sea creature feature is the Redtooth Triggerfish: when they are dangerous, how to identify them and where to see them. We also highlight diving in the Galapagos, Turkey and the Seychelles plus the liveaboard deals specially selected for us by Divebooker. Any questions, reviews or comments to news@scubatravel.co.uk.

What's New at SCUBA Travel?

	Glorious Galapagos One of the very best diving areas on the planet - and now with $2000 off trips! When and where to go for the big stuff. LEARN MORE…
	Turkish Delight Where to dive in Turkey this summer - discover the best dive sites and dive operators. READ MORE…
	Which sunscreens are safe for sea life? Which sun protection should scuba divers and snorkellers choose, and what are the nasties to beware of? FIND OUT …

7 Great Liveaboard Deals for 2024 - Save $2000

We bring you news of some fantastic dive boat deals, specially selected for us by Divebooker.com, the liveaboard specialists. Including some of the world's very best diving destinations like the Galapagos, the Red Sea and the Maldives.

1. Carpe Diem, Maldives, throughout August to December 2024, SAVE 10%, Price from USD 2100 1890 per trip per person
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2. Philippine Siren, October 2024 (7 or 10 nights), SAVE 20%
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3. Tiburon Explorer, Galapagos, 20 April 2024, SAVE $2000. Visit the famous Darwin and Wolf islands. This liveaboard is like a 5-star resort in the sea. Sharks and nudibranchs, turtles, schools of tuna, eagle rays, and sea lions are very common.
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4. The Junk, Thailand, April until May 2024 (4 or 6 nights) at the Similan and Surin islands, SAVE 20%
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5. Emperor Harmoni, Best of Raja Ampat, 21 - 30 May and 5 - 14 September 2024 (9 nights), Price from EUR 4,455 3,564 per trip per person, SAVE Euro 891
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6. Bahamas Master, 10 - 15 September 2024 (5 nights),SAVE 20%,Price from USD 2,675 2,140 per trip per person
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7. Tambora, Tranquil Sulawesi, 24 May - 3 June 2024 (10 nights), SAVE 30%, Price from USD 5,500 3,850 per trip per person
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Red in Tooth

Our Creature of the Month today is the Redtooth Triggerfish, Odonus niger

How to identify them?

Sometimes mixed up with the blue triggerfish, you can distinguish the Redtooth by the two dark lines running from the front of their eyes towards the mouth. They also have two blunt protruding front teeth which are red or orange.

Up to 40 cm long, they are often in groups. In the northern Red Sea though, the adult groups are much smaller and only the younsters form large schools. They have deep blue or purplish bodies, with a lighter or greenish face.

Where to see them?

Apart from the Red Sea, they live in the Indian and Pacific oceans. They used to be rarely seen off Pakistan and India, but in the last couple of years they have also been caught in commercial quantities there.

The adults like to live on current rich seaward reef slopes, from 5 to 55 m.

They are dangerous when guarding eggs - don't get too close

Triggerfish lay eggs in a nest in the sand. According to Hiroshi Kawase, the female lays the eggs in the early morning and the eggs hatch in the same day after sunset. She tends the eggs by fanning and blowing water on them, and guards - them driving away intruding fish (and divers!). The male redtoothed triggerfish, will also guard the eggs but doesn't tend them. Triggerfish guarding eggs may try to bite curious divers and have caused injuries.

Like other triggerfish, the redtooth spawns on a full moon

What does the redtooth triggerfish eat?

They prefer crustaceans, but will also eat zooplankton, algae, small fish and squid.

What triggers them?

They are called triggerfish because of their ability to raise up the long dorsal spine behind their heads and lock it in place with a second spine. They do this for protection, wedging themselves into the reef to prevent predators dragging them out.

Animalia (Kingdom) > Chordate (Phylum) > Actinopterygii (Class) > Tetraodontiformes (Order) > Balistidae (Family) > Odonus (Genus) > O. niger (Species)

References

Kawase, Simplicity and diversity in the reproductive ecology of triggerfish (Balistidae) and filefish (Monacanthidae), Fisheries science, 2002, Volume 68.
Coral Reef Fishes, Indo-Pacific and Caribbean, by Ewald Lieske and Robert Myers, Harper Collins
Suyani et al, First report on the diet and reproductive biology of red-toothed triggerfish Odonus niger, Cambridge University Press: 2021

Diving news from around the World

	12 Years of data reveal Seychelles manta ray haunts How many manta rays are in the Seychelles? Where are they going? When are they there? All is revealed.
	South Africa's Great White Shark population: Imploding, or fleeing Orcas? A group of marine biologists are challenging the findings of a recent study suggesting that South Africa's White Shark population has not decreased, but simply fled predation by Orcas.
	Fishing for oil and meat drives deepwater shark and ray decline The international liver oil and meat trade is driving rapid depletion of deepwater sharks and rays - an outcome that is potentially irreversible due to these animals' extremely slow life histories.
	'Janitors' of the Sea: Overharvested Sea Cucumbers Play Crucial Role in Protecting Coral In a first-of-its-kind study, the researchers discovered that sea cucumbers protect coral from disease.
	UK Expands Marine Protections in South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Marine protections have been vastly expanded in the waters surrounding South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, home to some of the most varied wildlife on the planet.
	A coral superhighway in the Indian Ocean Despite being scattered across more than a million square kilometres, research reveals remote coral reefs across the Seychelles are closely related. Ocean currents scatter significant numbers of larvae between these distant islands, acting as a "coral superhighway".
	Protesters take to Hobart waterfront to demand end to fish farming People want the next government to remove fish farms from Tasmania's waters.
	Answered: 11 Frequently asked questions about scuba diving From Is scuba diving safe to How can I minimise my environmental impact when scuba diving?

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The Cliff

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SCUBA News (ISSN 1476-8011)

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