Feisty fish at McDuff Aquarium near Aberdeen have been hitting the headlines, but press reports that gangs of giant turbot have been attacking and terrorising the aquarium's divers are wide of the mark.

A full-scale media frenzy erupted after reports that the turbot were being evicted from McDuff Aquarium after attacking aquarium divers sent in to feed the fish.

"They do get vey excited when divers enter the tank, and they will try to eat anything - your mask, your regulator, your suit - but they haven't injured anybody" education officer Claire Matthews told Divernet.

The main victims of the voracious turbot appear to be the conger eels. "We take squid in for the conger eels, some of which are 2m long, and while we're holding it out for them it's not unusual for a turbot to nip in and grab the food. It leaves us facing a rather cheesed-off conger empty-handed," she said.

The largest turbot are about to be released back into the Moray Firth to give the congers a break.

"We've had these turbot for 4-5 years and when they arrived they were no bigger than a 50p piece," explained Claire. "But they're not evil, they're just a bit stupid. The turbot are that dim that I've seen them choking on rocks they've tried to swallow."

So if you're planning on diving in the Moray Firth this season, you know what to watch out for.

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