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Overview
Spur-and-groove coral reef 6 miles off Key Largo, anchored by an 1880s wrought-iron light tower and routinely cited as one of the most visited dive reefs in the world. 30+ mooring buoys mark distinct sites including Hole in the Wall — a 9 m photogenic swim-through under a coral ledge — and the Winch, where the 170-foot schooner Slobadana sank in 1887 leaving a brass windlass cemented into the reef. Depths run 2–18 m over stands of elkhorn and brain coral. Resident green moray, schools of yellowtail snapper and grunts, parrotfish, southern stingrays under the ledges, and seasonal nurse sharks. Inside Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary — mooring only, no anchoring or touching coral.
Briefing note
Sanctuary Preservation Area — anchoring, lobstering, spearfishing, and coral contact are prohibited. Boats must tie to mooring buoys. Reef-friendly sunscreen required. Light current on the outer edge near the lighthouse pilings.
What you'll see
8 species curated- year-roundElkhorn coral
- year-roundYellowtail snapper
- year-roundGreen moray
- year-roundStoplight parrotfish
- year-roundGreat barracuda
- seasonalNurse sharkPeak: May · Jun · Jul · Aug · Sep
- year-roundSouthern stingray
- rareSpotted eagle ray
Sightings evidence
1 record on file- high confidenceElkhorn coral
- Last confirmed
- May 2026
- Recent records
- 130 within 10 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 We deliberately do not publish a numeric '% chance of sighting' from this data.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 | 22–24 °C | 12–22 m | mild |
| Feb | 22–24 °C | 12–22 m | mild |
| Mar | 23–25 °C | 15–25 m | mild |
| Apr | 24–26 °C | 18–28 m | mild |
| May | 26–28 °C | 20–30 m | mild |
| Jun | 28–29 °C | 20–30 m | mild |
| Jul | 29–30 °C | 20–30 m | mild |
| Aug | 29–31 °C | 20–30 m | mild |
| Sep | 28–30 °C | 15–25 m | mild |
| Oct | 26–28 °C | 15–25 m | mild |
| Nov | 24–26 °C | 12–22 m | mild |
| Dec | 22–24 °C | 12–22 m | mild |
Season calendar
Peak season highlighted · current month outlined
Next step
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