Exuma Cays · Bahamas · Reef
Amberjack Reef
Up to ten reef sharks over a 15 m patch reef
Area photo: Thespis377 · CC BY-SA 2.0
A patch reef inside the park where the descent stops at 15 m. Up to ten Caribbean reef sharks and nurse sharks work the coral alongside black, yellowmouth and yellowfin grouper, and the sand between the heads is full of garden eels. Sharks were fed here in the past and no longer are, but they still frequent this part of the Exuma Cays.
Where it is and how deep
No published position for this site — the map shows Exuma Cays and its other sites; operators know the mooring.
The dive
The descent is only to 15 m, so take a moment on the way down to control your breathing, because you will shortly be surrounded. Up to ten Caribbean reef sharks and nurse sharks circle the patch reef, and black, yellowmouth and yellowfin grouper sit among the heads rather than backing off as you settle in beside them.
Work the sand as well as the coral. Garden eels pop their heads out of the bottom and sway in the current, pirate blennies and other small critters hold in the reef itself, and lobsters are numerous here because the park protects them from fishing. Keep an eye on the blue for eagle rays crossing. The ascent has its own event: a safety stop party of over 100 horse-eye jacks.
Background
Amberjack Reef was a shark-feeding site. Feeding stopped in accordance with the Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park's request, and the sharks stayed anyway, still frequenting this part of the cays. The protection that comes with the park shapes the rest of the dive too: lobsters are present in large numbers here precisely because they cannot be fished inside the park boundary.
Marine life and season
- Reef sharks
- Groupers
- Trevally & jacks
- Eagle rays
- Macro critters
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Good |
Season follows Exuma Cays: December–April brings the calmest, driest conditions; September–October is peak Atlantic hurricane season.
Dive videos
Shark Dive at Amberjack Reef · Matthew Lawrence on YouTube
Amberjack Reef, night dive, Exuma, The Bahamas · TorontoDiver on YouTube
Questions divers ask
Are sharks fed at Amberjack Reef?+
Not any more. This was previously a shark-feeding site, and feeding stopped in accordance with the Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park's request. Caribbean reef sharks and nurse sharks still frequent the reef on their own account.
Sources
- Exuma Cays Dive Sites — Dive The World
In The Logbook
- Where to see reef sharks on your first divesBig animals · 14 min read
More dive sites in Exuma Cays
Blue hole
A vertical shaft with side caverns at its 18 m base
Wreck
An intact 27 m patrol cutter at 18 m, with reef sharks circling it
Wall
Canyons and rock passages cut into a wall between 13 m and 30 m
Wall
The Cathedral, a sunlit cavern swim-through at 12 m full of silversides
Wall
A 9 m shelf that slopes to 15 m and then falls into open blue
Drift
A tidal chute that drops you to 12 m then flushes you back to 4 m
Drift
A 30-minute tide-timed drift through an Exuma cut at 7.5 m
Similar dives elsewhere
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A coral-covered French anchor of the 1750s, hooked into the reef
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A large pillar coral standing over a 15 m reef floor