The redtooth or niger triggerfish (Odonus niger) is a handsome fish that can be kept in a reef aquarium. Of all the potentially reef-safe triggerfishes, this is one with a more dubious reputation. It will eat ornamental crustaceans and as it grows larger, it may attack and even kill fish tankmates.
Triggerfishes have long had a bad reputation for being voracious predators and aquarium bullies. Many of the triggers are some of the most polyphagous of all fishes, eating everything
from algae, sponges and corals, to all kinds of crustaceans and even
smaller fishes. So the idea of adding one of these beasts to a reef aquarium, packed with succulent invertebrates, seems a bit daft! While it is true, the majority of triggerfishes are not appropriate invertebrate aquarium neighbors, there is a relatively small group of triggers that have more specialized diets that can be housed with sessile invertebrates.
In this post we will examine these triggerfishes and look at the calculated risk of keeping some of the less suitable species with your invertebrates.
