Challenger Bay
Conditions & tides
Scored by DiveConnect's site-physics model
Marine forecast via Copernicus Marine. Score is a rule-based guide from swell/wind vs. the site's exposure — always dive your own assessment.
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About this site
Challenger Bay, also called Gotham City, is a dive site on the Ribbon Reefs of the Great Barrier Reef in Queensland, between Ribbon Reef No 10 and No 9. It is regarded as one of the best night dives on the Great Barrier Reef, with plenty of fish and sharks hunting around divers.
The coral here is not the draw, as Cyclones Ita and Nathan hit it hard in 2014 and 2015. The most prominent feature is a very large colony of Pavona clavis that has grown from 30 m up to 5 m, and it hosts lionfish, leafy scorpionfish and swarms of anthias and damselfish.
Schooling fish can be impressive, with red bass, giant trevally, surgeonfish, milkfish, sweetlips, redtooth triggerfish and fusiliers in large numbers. Barramundi cod, flowery cod and friendly Malabar grouper are common, batfish work the wall, and whitetip reef sharks rest on the sand while grey reef sharks cruise in the deep. In summer manta rays pass through, and on a night dive the trevally, red bass and sharks hunt right at the edge of torchlight.
Marine life here
Confirmed by our research team, reported by independent divers, or observed nearby via iNaturalist — each entry is labelled with its source.
Common LionfishPterois volitansReported here · unconfirmed
Barrier Reef AnemonefishAmphiprion akindynosReported here · unconfirmed
Whale SharkRhincodon typusReported here · unconfirmed
Whitetip Reef SharkTriaenodon obesusReported here · unconfirmed
Blackspotted PufferArothron nigropunctatusReported here · unconfirmed
Spine-cheek ClownfishAmphiprion biaculeatusReported here · unconfirmed
WhaleWhaleReported here · unconfirmed
TrevallyTrevallyReported here · unconfirmed
SurgeonfishSurgeonfishReported here · unconfirmed
SweetlipsSweetlipsReported here · unconfirmed
TriggerfishTriggerfishReported here · unconfirmed
FusilierFusilierReported here · unconfirmed
GrouperGrouperReported here · unconfirmed
PufferfishPufferfishReported here · unconfirmed
LionfishLionfishReported here · unconfirmed
Leaf scorpionfishLeaf scorpionfishReported here · unconfirmed
DamselfishDamselfishReported here · unconfirmed
BatfishBatfishReported here · unconfirmed
Bumphead parrotfishBumphead parrotfishReported here · unconfirmed
BarracudaBarracudaReported here · unconfirmed
MandarinfishMandarinfishReported here · unconfirmed
Manta rayManta rayReported here · unconfirmed
Durable tips from divers — access, hazards, marine life, facilities. For day-of conditions, use the report tool in the conditions card above.
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