ReefSeason BETAPrologue
Grey Angelfish (Pomacanthus arcuatus)
A dive briefing · Nassau, New Providence, Bahamas

Schoolhouse Reef

Dive site off New Providence, Bahamas. Here's what has been recorded at this site month by month, how the region’s reefs have weathered ocean heat, and how to prepare.

Nassaureef
Near this sitegeotagged about 5.0 km from the site coordinates Grey Angelfish (Pomacanthus arcuatus) · datadan · CC BY 4.0 · iNaturalist
Longspine Squirrelfish (Holocentrus rufus)
Chapter I · Arrival

Schoolhouse Reef: dive site off New Providence, Bahamas.

24.983° N77.502° W · OpenStreetMap · relation/17987283
19open records · GBIF
8species recorded
Near this sitegeotagged about 5.0 km from the site coordinates Longspine Squirrelfish (Holocentrus rufus) · datadan · CC BY 4.0 · iNaturalist
II

Entry

Longspine Squirrelfish (Holocentrus rufus)

Entry points, depths, currents and any local rules will be added once we can verify them from official sources.

To verifyDepth range, entry points and current notes. We publish them only with a citation. The coordinates mark the site in general, not a mooring or entry point.

Near this sitegeotagged about 5.0 km from the site coordinates Longspine Squirrelfish (Holocentrus rufus) · datadan · CC BY 4.0 · iNaturalist

▶
Captain's footage: Schoolhouse Reef
[video slot · coming soon]

The surface noise falls away.

Reds go first. The world turns blue-green.

Then Schoolhouse Reef rises to meet you.

Grey Angelfish (Pomacanthus arcuatus)
IV

What lives here, by month

Pick a month. These are the species most often recorded within about a kilometre in that month, from open survey records.

Oct
October · 0 qualifying records
Life calendar · records per month for this site's most-recorded species (blank means not in that month's top list)
SpeciesJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
American Pugnose Pipefish
Broadnose Worm Eel
Lantern Fish
Garman's Lanternfish
Hardhead Silverside
Reef Silverside
Keeltail needlefish
Tiger shark

Most-recorded species, all months

  1. American Pugnose Pipefish (1)
  2. Broadnose Worm Eel (1)
  3. Lantern Fish (1)
  4. Garman's Lanternfish (1)
  5. Hardhead Silverside (1)
  6. Reef Silverside (1)
  7. Tiger shark (1)
  8. Keeltail needlefish (1)

GBIF.org (2026-10-14), occurrence records within ~1 km, licensed CC0 or CC BY 4.0 only. Birds and land animals are excluded. Counts reflect survey effort, not abundance. 19 qualifying records. See them on GBIF. Common names: Wikidata (CC0) / GBIF. Species photos: Wikimedia Commons, credited with each species.

V

Forty-one summers of heat

Each stripe is one year since 1985, colored by its peak heat stress across NOAA's “Central Bahamas” region. These are NOAA Coral Reef Watch satellite figures for the whole region, not for this one site.

19852026
Reef health report · Central Bahamas

Heat stress, measured from orbit.

Degree Heating Weeks · 2026-10-1317.8°C-weeks · NOAA status: Alert Level 2

NOAA CRW virtual station “Central Bahamas”. NOAA's alert thresholds are 4 °C-weeks (Alert Level 1) and 8 °C-weeks (Alert Level 2). Station page · Method. Credit: NOAA Coral Reef Watch.

Peak per year · dashed lines at 4, 8 and 16 °C-weeks
The past twelve months
VI

Conditions

Average sea temperature through the year. Check the live readings before you go.

Average sea surface temperature by month: NOAA CRW “Central Bahamas” station climatology (monthly means).

Bahamas Department of Meteorology · forecasts →

Buoy readings are measurements; forecasts are models. Use them for planning only, and assess conditions on site. Depth and visibility data aren't listed until we can cite a source.

VII

Plan & prepare

  1. Read the official marine forecast the night before.Offshore, wind and sea state decide the day.
  2. Confirm access, hours and any fees with the site.[Placeholder: verified operator list to come]
  3. Study this month's species above.You'll recognise more when you know the names.
  4. Hands off, fins up, buoyancy dialled. Log what you see.Your sightings can become tomorrow's open data.

Credits

Coordinates
OpenStreetMap relation/17987283 · source · ODbL. OpenStreetMap (ODbL) wreck and reef features; Southwest Reef from Wikidata (CC0).
Species records
GBIF.org, CC0 & CC BY 4.0 records. By license: CC0_1_0: 18, CC_BY_4_0: 1
Dataset
Vertebrate Zoology Division - Ichthyology, Yale Peabody Museum · doi:10.15468/mgyhok (17 records) · GBIF
Dataset
Diving into the vertical dimension of elasmobranch movement ecology (2000-2019) · doi:10.1126/sciadv.abo1754 (1 records) · GBIF
Dataset
Field Museum of Natural History (Zoology) Fish Collection · doi:10.15468/alz7wu (1 records) · GBIF
Query
https://api.gbif.org/v1/occurrence/search?decimalLatitude=24.972859999999997,24.99286&decimalLongitude=-77.51196,-77.49195999999999&license=CC0_1_0&license=CC_BY_4_0&taxonKey=44&taxonKey=206&taxonKey=229&taxonKey=136&taxonKey=225&occurrenceStatus=PRESENT&limit=0
Heat stress & SST
NOAA Coral Reef Watch, 5 km Regional Virtual Station “Central Bahamas”
Hero photo
Near this sitegeotagged about 5.0 km from the site coordinates Grey Angelfish (Pomacanthus arcuatus) · datadan · CC BY 4.0 · iNaturalist
Arrival photo
Near this sitegeotagged about 5.0 km from the site coordinates Longspine Squirrelfish (Holocentrus rufus) · datadan · CC BY 4.0 · iNaturalist
Gallery
2 photos, credited under each image
Species photos
Wikimedia Commons, credited with each species. Full list: Data & sources