Look for the Fish in a Box

By Tim Grollimund

When I’m on the reef and I want a chuckle, I look for a fish in a box. Not a cardboard box of fish like you find in the bait shop, but a body box that fits perfectly and is color matched to its occupant. I bet I have seen some sort of fish in a box on every dive. On some occasions we find juveniles, too. They are about the size of a quarter and look like floating marbles.

I’m referring, of course, to a group of animals called boxfish. They’re fun to watch. Sometimes I think they look like little robots scooting around the reef in search of a new power source. The Energizer bunny with fins and armor - and in some cases, horns. Some versions are friendly, some are quite shy. But they are always entertaining. In the Keys we have two varieties of cowfish (scrawled and honeycomb) and three types of trunkfish. There are also references to trunkfish excreting a toxin that is lethal to other fishes in the immediate vicinity. The toxin is a surfactant type of mucous called ostracitoxin. Some scientists have studied this toxin and attempted to make shark repellant out of it, but were not successful in creating an effective marketable product. The main difficulty was maintaining a high enough concentration for a time long enough to be effective.

Trunkfish have some unique movement characteristics that have also been the topic if intense scrutiny. Since they are encased in a triangle of bony plates, their core body does not flex like other fishes. The only moving parts are the fins, eyes and mouth, which protrude through the bony plates.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tim Grollimund
• Release date: Apr 29, 2017
• ISBN: 9781370262076

Tim Grollimund

Tim spent nearly a decade in Key Largo, Florida. He wrote the scuba diving column for the local newspaper, The Reporter, for over three years, and also served as a Working Group member and Alternate Representative on the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council. His ebooks are all based on his newspaper columns. Each ebook has a collection of underwater images shot by Tim. The ebooks cover a wide range of marine life species and ocean conservation topics.

Book preview

Look for the Fish in a Box

Tim Grollimund

Author: Tim Grollimund

Date Published: March 18, 2017

ISBN: 978-1-3702620-7-6

Publisher: Smashwords Edition

Copyright © Apex Global Solutions LLC 2017. All rights reserved. This material may not be reproduced, displayed, modified or distributed without the prior and express written permission of the copyright holder. All inquiries via timgrollimund.com

Table of Contents

Look for the Fish in a Box

Acknowledgments

Introduction

The Reporter

Boxfish

About The Author

Other eBooks, Prints and Keepsakes

Articles I used to write this column

Acknowledgments

To Dad, who knew I loved the sea, and always encouraged me to pursue my passion.

Introduction

When I moved to the Florida Keys in 2009, I had one objective in mind. Simply, to become highly proficient as an underwater photographer.