Pinktail Triggerfish

The pinktail triggerfish stands out for the contrast between its dark body and its light-colored fins: the dorsal and anal fins are white with black edges, and the tail shades from white to pink. Juveniles have dark lines radiating from the eye and extending onto the fins. In the wild it lives in small loose groups on current-swept, coral-rich reefs, and most of its diet is algae and detritus; it also eats crustaceans, octopus, sponges and small fish. It is one of the relatively docile triggerfish species. Specimens are wild-collected.

• At least 800 liters and 180 cm in length for an adult; strong filtration.
• Salinity specific gravity 1.023–1.026, pH 8.1–8.4, temperature 24–27°C.
• Rock crevices where it can wedge itself at night by locking its dorsal spine.
• Not reef-safe: It eats shrimp, crabs, snails and sea urchins; although some individuals leave corals alone, invertebrates are not safe.

Omnivorous. Offer chopped mussels, shrimp, squid and krill along with dried seaweed and foods containing spirulina; it is fed 1–2 times a day.

Calm compared with other triggerfish but may become territorial as it grows. It is aggressive towards its own kind and other triggers.

Good companions: Tangs, large angelfish, foxface, large wrasses, moray eels, large damselfish.

Avoid: Invertebrates, small and slow fish, a second triggerfish.