Grotta Dei Gamberi

Ustica is a small volcanic island off the northern coast of Sicily, in the Tyrrhenian Sea, part of the Province of Palermo. The waters around it were designated Italy's first marine protected area, and the island's coastline is marked by numerous grottoes and rocky inlets formed in its volcanic rock, of which Grotta Dei Gamberi is one along the western shore. The site reaches a maximum depth of only around 2 metres but is rated an advanced dive, likely reflecting the technical demands of navigating within the cave itself rather than depth. Divers have also reported barracuda, comber, painted comber, Mediterranean rainbow wrasse, and ornate wrasse moving through the grotto, along with purple sea stars, star coral, and violescent sea-whips on the rock walls.

Confirmed by our research team, reported by independent divers, or observed nearby via iNaturalist — each entry is labelled with its source.

• Ornate WrasseThalassoma pavoReported here · unconfirmed
• Mediterranean Rainbow WrasseCoris julisReported here · unconfirmed
• Painted ComberSerranus scribaReported here · unconfirmed
• ComberSerranus cabrillaReported here · unconfirmed
• Purple Sea StarOphidiaster ophidianusReported here · unconfirmed
• Star CoralAstroides calycularisReported here · unconfirmed
• Violescent Sea-whipParamuricea clavataReported here · unconfirmed
• BarracudaBarracudaReported here · unconfirmed
• Mediterranean Violet AeolidFlabellina affinisObserved near here · iNaturalist
• European ParrotfishSparisoma cretenseObserved near here · iNaturalist
• Mediterranean DamselfishChromis chromisObserved near here · iNaturalist