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Hotels, dive operators, gear, and how to get here are on the Santa Maria location page.
Overview
Remote pinnacle chain between São Miguel and Santa Maria. Steep walls drop into blue water hosting passing whale sharks, mobula schools, and large dusky grouper. The Dollabarat seamount nearby tops out at 5 m and pulls in pelagic action.
What you'll see
4 species curated- rareWhale sharkPeak: Jul · Aug · Sep
- seasonalSicklefin devil ray
- year-roundDusky grouper
- seasonalAtlantic wreckfish
Sightings evidence
1 record on file- low confidenceWhale shark
- Last confirmed
- Sep 2025
- Recent records
- 8 within 25 km
- Cluster months
- Jul, Aug, Sep
Sources & methodology
How we summarise this
We aggregate confirmed occurrence records from GBIF and OBIS within a fixed radius of each dive site. Occurrence records confirm presence and reveal seasonality clustering, but they DO NOT measure per-dive probability — there is no eligible-effort denominator. We deliberately do not publish a numeric '% chance of sighting' from this data.
Sources
- Global Biodiversity Information Facility — GBIF Secretariat
- Ocean Biodiversity Information System — IOC-UNESCO
- iNaturalist — California Academy of Sciences & National Geographic Society
- IUCN Red List of Threatened Species — International Union for Conservation of Nature
- Wildbook (Sharkbook, Whale Shark, Manta Matcher) — Wild Me
- OBIS-SEAMAP — Duke University Marine Geospatial Ecology Lab / OBIS
- WoRMS — World Register of Marine Species — Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ)
- FishBase — FishBase Consortium
- Atlas of Living Australia — CSIRO / GBIF Australia
- REEF Volunteer Fish Survey — Reef Environmental Education Foundation
Conditions
| Month | Water | Visibility | Current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 16–18 °C | 20–35 m | moderate |
| Feb | 15–17 °C | 20–35 m | moderate |
| Mar | 16–17 °C | 20–35 m | moderate |
| Apr | 16–18 °C | 20–35 m | moderate |
| May | 17–19 °C | 20–35 m | moderate |
| Jun | 19–21 °C | 25–40 m | moderate |
| Jul | 21–23 °C | 25–40 m | moderate |
| Aug | 23–25 °C | 25–40 m | moderate |
| Sep | 22–24 °C | 25–40 m | moderate |
| Oct | 20–22 °C | 20–35 m | moderate |
| Nov | 18–20 °C | 20–35 m | moderate |
| Dec | 17–19 °C | 20–35 m | moderate |
Season calendar
Peak season highlighted · current month outlined
Gear for this site
Beyond the basic kit- 5mm wetsuit — Atlantic temperatures even in peak season.
- SMB — Open-water drift exits standard.
Next step
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