Cap d'Agde · France · Reef
Le Langoustier
Faults and overhangs in two coralligenous blocks at 21 m
Area photo: Christian Ferrer · CC BY-SA 3.0
Le Langoustier is two massive coralligenous blocks standing on sand about 30 m apart, on a 21 m bottom off Cap d'Agde. The interest is in the structure: faults run through the blocks and overhangs cut under them, and that shaded rock holds gorgonians, congers, spiny lobsters, scorpionfish and squat lobsters.
Where it is and how deep
43.2504° N, 3.5147° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
Two massive coralligenous reefs stand on the sand here, isolated from one another by about 30 m, with the site given as 21 m deep. The dive is a crossing between the two: down onto the first block, around it, out over the open sand, then onto the second, with the way back made along whichever face still has time left in it.
The blocks are cut with faults and undercut with overhangs, and that shaded rock is where the life is. Gorgonians grow off the faces. Congers lie back in the faults, spiny lobsters are on it in numbers, as the name suggests, scorpionfish sit still against the rock and squat lobsters work the overhangs. It is a slow dive with a torch in hand rather than a swim with a view.
Marine life and season
- Macro critters
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Off-season | Off-season | Fair | Fair | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair | Fair |
Season follows Cap d'Agde: Abyss Plongée opens March to December; the sea averages 12 °C in February and 22 °C in August, and the Tramontane or Mistral can stop the boats in any month.
Sources
- Le Langoustier — Scubago (SSI MyDiveGuide)
More dive sites in Cap d'Agde
Wreck
A 25 m cod boat lost in a storm in 1913, on 12 m of sand
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White gorgonian at 35–40 m, dived on technical setups
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A sheltered 7 m dive beside the Deux Frères rocks
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Two 2 m blocks where a dive can count fifty spiny lobsters
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Coralligenous rocks at 18–19 m west of the Brescou rock
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Nine coralligenous reefs at 20–24 m, linked by guide wires
A run of coralligenous rock on a 21 m bottom
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Black volcanic rock in 3–11 m, with octopus through the holes
Similar dives elsewhere
White gorgonians, nudibranchs and lobsters in the faults at 18 to 20 m
Gorgonians on the vertical north wall of a submerged island
A 40 m canyon at the end of a 5 to 20 m drop-off
Large congers on a rock seven minutes from Tamariu