Kittiwake Shipwreck

The USS Kittiwake was a US Navy submarine rescue vessel launched in 1945 and later sunk deliberately in 2011 as an artificial reef off Seven Mile Beach on Grand Cayman. The wreck rests on a sandy bottom, with its main deck around 15 metres and the top of the structure reaching much shallower, making it accessible to a wide range of divers and popular with snorkelers as well. At roughly 78 metres long, it offers open interior spaces including the old sick bay and decompression chamber, penetrable for divers with the right training. It has become one of the most visited wreck dives in the Cayman Islands due to its easy access and calm conditions off Seven Mile Beach. Storm damage over the years has shifted parts of the wreck, so its exact configuration has changed somewhat since the sinking. Divers have also reported barracuda and grouper moving around the structure.

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

• Mustard Hill CoralPorites astreoidesReported here · unconfirmed
• Lobed Star CoralOrbicella annularisReported here · unconfirmed
• Common LionfishPterois volitansReported here · unconfirmed
• Greater Star CoralMontastraea cavernosaReported here · unconfirmed
• Atlantic Blue TangAcanthurus coeruleusReported here · unconfirmed
• Schoolmaster SnapperLutjanus apodusReported here · unconfirmed
• Longspine SquirrelfishHolocentrus rufusReported here · unconfirmed
• GrouperGrouperReported here · unconfirmed
• BarracudaBarracudaReported here · unconfirmed