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Hotels, dive operators, gear, and how to get here are on the Brothers Islands location page.
Overview
Cigar-shaped reef 12 km off Marsa Alam, 375 m long and aligned north-south with vertical walls dropping past 100 m on either side. The south plateau slopes from 18 m to 40 m and is the autumn rendezvous point for oceanic whitetip sharks — the site's signature animal — which cruise the surface from October through December. The north plateau steps down to 30 m before plunging, and a current-swept saddle joins the two tips. Hammerheads school here in summer, threshers and silvertips appear in the blue, and red Dendronephthya soft corals carpet the overhangs. A memorial to diver Arno Wallaard sits on the south plateau. Strong, variable currents and the depth profile make it advanced-only.
Briefing note
Oceanic whitetips approach divers closely and have been involved in past incidents at this site — stay vertical, keep groups tight, and avoid trailing gear or shiny objects. Currents can reverse mid-dive: brief the plan as a drift in either direction. The deep south plateau memorial honors a Dutch diver who died here; respect the marker. Liveaboard or day-boat only; no shore access.
What you'll see
9 species curated- seasonalOceanic whitetip sharkPeak: Oct · Nov · Dec
- seasonalScalloped hammerheadPeak: Jun · Jul · Aug
- seasonalPelagic thresher sharkPeak: Oct · Nov · Dec · Jan · Feb
- seasonalReef manta rayPeak: Mar · Apr
- year-roundGrey reef shark
- rareSilvertip shark
- year-roundHawksbill turtle
- year-roundBluecheek butterflyfish
- year-roundRed soft coral
Sightings evidence
1 record on file- medium confidenceOceanic whitetip shark
- Last confirmed
- Dec 2025
- Recent records
- 45 within 50 km
- Cluster months
- Oct, Nov, Dec
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 We deliberately do not publish a numeric '% chance of sighting' from this data.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 | 22–24 °C | 25–35 m | moderate |
| Feb | 21–23 °C | 25–40 m | moderate |
| Mar | 22–24 °C | 25–40 m | moderate |
| Apr | 23–25 °C | 25–40 m | moderate |
| May | 25–27 °C | 25–35 m | moderate |
| Jun | 27–29 °C | 20–30 m | strong |
| Jul | 28–30 °C | 20–30 m | strong |
| Aug | 28–30 °C | 20–30 m | strong |
| Sep | 28–30 °C | 25–35 m | moderate |
| Oct | 26–28 °C | 30–40 m | moderate |
| Nov | 24–26 °C | 30–40 m | moderate |
| Dec | 23–25 °C | 25–40 m | moderate |
Season calendar
Peak season highlighted · current month outlined
Gear for this site
Beyond the basic kit- SMB + long reel — Open-ocean drift exits over 100 m of water — boat crews need a marker before you surface
- Dive computer with deep alarms — Wall drops past recreational limits and currents pull divers deeper than planned
- Nitrox certification — Recommended for extended bottom time on the 30-40 m plateaus
Next step
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