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Hotels, dive operators, gear, and how to get here are on the Cozumel location page.
Overview
Cozumel's signature drift along a reef complex of buttresses, swim-throughs, and coral towers that fall away into deep blue. Strong steady current carries divers along while turtles, eagle rays, and splendid toadfish appear in the gaps. The reef stretches for several kilometers and is typically dived as multiple distinct sections.
What you'll see
5 species curated- year-roundHawksbill turtle
- year-roundSplendid toadfish
- seasonalSpotted eagle rayPeak: Dec · Jan · Feb · Mar
- year-roundNassau grouper
- rareCaribbean reef shark
Sightings evidence
1 record on file- high confidenceHawksbill turtle
- Last confirmed
- May 2026
- Recent records
- 124 within 20 km
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 We deliberately do not publish a numeric '% chance of sighting' from this data.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
- OBIS-SEAMAP — Duke University Marine Geospatial Ecology Lab / OBIS
- iNaturalist — California Academy of Sciences & National Geographic Society
- IUCN Red List of Threatened Species — International Union for Conservation of Nature
- 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 | 25–26 °C | 25–40 m | moderate |
| Feb | 25–26 °C | 25–40 m | moderate |
| Mar | 26–27 °C | 25–40 m | moderate |
| Apr | 26–27 °C | 25–40 m | moderate |
| May | 27–28 °C | 25–40 m | moderate |
| Jun | 28–29 °C | 20–35 m | moderate |
| Jul | 28–29 °C | 20–35 m | moderate |
| Aug | 28–29 °C | 20–35 m | moderate |
| Sep | 28–29 °C | 15–30 m | moderate |
| Oct | 27–28 °C | 15–30 m | moderate |
| Nov | 26–27 °C | 20–35 m | moderate |
| Dec | 25–26 °C | 25–40 m | moderate |
Season calendar
Peak season highlighted · current month outlined
Gear for this site
Beyond the basic kit- Surface marker buoy — Every dive is a drift — SMB required for boat pickup.
Next step
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