Saturday Morning Seatech Beach Dive & Staghorn Coral Survey

Seatech Ledge is known for how the west wall of the first reef rises dramatically from a depth of 25 feet to within 12 feet of the surface. Below the ledge, a sandy bottom ends in rocky ledges which develop into prominent overhangs and deep clefts which provide prime habitat for lobsters, eels, banded coral shrimp, and tigertail sea cucumbers. A lush garden of soft corals, sea grass, barrel sponges, sea fans, and coral heads above the ledge hosts clouds of schooling grunt, porkfish, pilchards, and others interspersed with cruising angel and parrot fish.

In addition to drifting along and above the ledge, some of our team will survey an exciting new crop of staghorn coral we observed emerging among the rock ledges at the base of the ledge. This new coral is remarkable because it is the first new growth seen in this vicinity in years and its presence speaks well of water quality and overall health of the reef system. Although traces of the "seedlings" were evident sooner, we saw noticeable growth among all corals during our night dive recently. We will photograph and record sizes among the survey field.

In favorable conditions, this dive is within the ability of most experienced beach divers. The surface swim is twice the length of the pier (roughly 1500'), maximum depth is 25', and bottom time is usually 60 minutes. After 35 minutes at the ledge, we return to the beach underwater to enjoy sights along the way.

Parking should be plentiful before the event time and meter rates are around $5 per hour. A freshwater shower and restroom facilities are on site.