Scripps Canyon

Scripps Canyon lies just off La Jolla, California, at the head of the La Jolla submarine canyon system near Scripps Institution of Oceanography. It is shore-accessible from La Jolla Shores, where a sandy bottom gives way to the steep walls of the canyon head, reaching a maximum depth of around 39.6 metres and rated an advanced dive. Divers have reported dark cracks and crevices along the walls, a need for comfort with the surface swim out to the site, complete buoyancy control on the steep drop-offs, and a strenuous climb back up to the parking area afterward. Nudibranchs are a regular find on the canyon walls, and the site draws both recreational divers exploring the rim and researchers interested in the submarine canyon system itself.

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

• NudibranchNudibranchConfirmed present · 2 independent sources
• California Sea LionZalophus californianusReported here · unconfirmed
• Opalescent NudibranchHermissenda opalescensReported here · unconfirmed
• Kelp BassParalabrax clathratusReported here · unconfirmed
• Sunburst AnemoneAnthopleura solaReported here · unconfirmed
• Striped Shore CrabPachygrapsus crassipesReported here · unconfirmed