SOUTHERN RED SEA

Daedelus
This small, isolated reef lies in the open sea, almost halfway to Saudi Arabia. Less than 800m (0.5 miles) across, it is marked by a lighthouse which forms the only break on the horizon for many miles in any direction. The reef has steep drops on the east, north and south sides, all offering good diving. The southern side offers excellent shelter form the prevailing north winds, and is the preferred mooring point for visiting boats.

The profile of the reef on the three best sides is very sheer, running form the surface to depths of 70m or more. On the west side, there is a drop-off with an ‘anemone city’, where you will find astonishing concentrations of beautiful anemones and a section of massive blue coral growth.

To the north, the open water currents bring the best selection of pelagic fish. Moving down the east coast, another impressive drop-off runs toward the southeast tip of the reef, where there have been repeated sightings of thresher sharks. This is a rare opportunity to see these amazing predators up close. They are easily recognized by their elongated tails, with which they are said to ‘thresh’ schools of smaller fish, stunning them before eating them.

The reef is richly developed throughout, with good coral growth from the surface to the depths. Hard and soft coral species are both well represented. Fish life is as dense as you would expect on an isolated reef pinnacle, with the usual reef species complemented by large concentrations of schooling species, such as snapper, longnose unicornfish and a variety of surgeonfish.