Gorgoniidae-Reproduction
A dive briefing · Dominica

Sea Siren Wreck

Dive site off Dominica’s west coast. 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.

Dominicawreck
Near this sitegeotagged about 1.4 km from the site coordinates Gorgoniidae-Reproduction · Ebuxbaum · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Elephant ear sponge (Agelas clathrodes)
Chapter I · Arrival

Sea Siren Wreck: dive site off Dominica’s west coast.

~15.583° N~61.462° W · OpenStreetMap · node/13717252075
1,444open records · GBIF
52species recorded
Near this sitegeotagged about 0.9 km from the site coordinates Elephant ear sponge (Agelas clathrodes) · Alexis Garretson · CC0 · iNaturalist
II

Entry

Elephant ear sponge (Agelas clathrodes)

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

Approximate positionThese coordinates come from a crowd-sourced map or Wikidata item, not an official mooring list. Use them for orientation only.
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 0.9 km from the site coordinates Elephant ear sponge (Agelas clathrodes) · Alexis Garretson · CC0 · iNaturalist

Gorgoniidae-Reproduction
Open media · Near this sitegeotagged about 1.4 km from the site coordinates Gorgoniidae-Reproduction · Ebuxbaum · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

The surface noise falls away.

Reds go first. The world turns blue-green.

Then Sea Siren Wreck rises to meet you.

Gorgoniidae-Reproduction
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 · 37 qualifying records
Life calendar · records per month for this site's most-recorded species (blank means not in that month's top list)
SpeciesJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Sunshinefish
Elatopathes abietina
Spotted Soapfish
Bicolor Basslet
Cardinal Snapper
Collared Eel
Caribbean hermit crab
Deepwater Cardinalfish
Ozius reticulatus
Blue Land Crab
Laleonectes vocans
Striate finger coral

Most-recorded species, all months

  1. Sunshinefish (7)
  2. Elatopathes abietina (6)
  3. Spotted Soapfish (6)
  4. Bicolor Basslet (5)
  5. Cardinal Snapper (5)
  6. Collared Eel (5)
  7. Blue Land Crab (4)
  8. Caribbean hermit crab (4)
  9. Deepwater Cardinalfish (4)
  10. Ozius reticulatus (4)
  11. Laleonectes vocans (3)
  12. Striate finger coral (3)
  13. Miniature awlsnail (3)
  14. Paraleptosphaeroma glynni (2)
  15. Uroptychus armatus (2)
  16. Twoclaw shrimp (2)
  17. Veleroniopsis kimallynae (2)
  18. Phanopathes expansa (2)
  19. Entemnotrochus adansonianus (2)
  20. Perotrochus quoyanus (2)

GBIF.org (2026-10-15), 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. 1,444 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 “Leeward Caribbean Islands” region. These are NOAA Coral Reef Watch satellite figures for the whole region, not for this one site.

19852026
Reef health report · Leeward Caribbean Islands

Heat stress, measured from orbit.

Degree Heating Weeks · 2026-10-1310.1°C-weeks · NOAA status: Alert Level 2

NOAA CRW virtual station “Leeward Caribbean Islands”. 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 “Leeward Caribbean Islands” station climatology (monthly means).

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 node/13717252075 · source · ODbL. OpenStreetMap (ODbL) dive-site nodes on the northwest coast; the Soufrière–Scotts Head sites use Wikidata (CC0) positions of the nearby beach or headland, so they are approximate. Approximate position.
Species records
GBIF.org, CC0 & CC BY 4.0 records. By license: CC_BY_4_0: 1,242, CC0_1_0: 202
Dataset
EOD – eBird Observation Dataset · doi:10.15468/aomfnb (1,210 records) · GBIF
Dataset
NMNH Extant Specimen Records (USNM, US) · doi:10.15468/hnhrg3 (125 records) · GBIF
Dataset
NMNH Material Samples (USNM) · doi:10.15468/jb9tdf (60 records) · GBIF
Dataset
iNaturalist Research-grade Observations · doi:10.15468/ab3s5x (17 records) · GBIF
Dataset
KUBI Mammalogy Collection · doi:10.15468/a3woj7 (11 records) · GBIF
Dataset
Field Museum of Natural History (Zoology) Invertebrate Collection · doi:10.15468/6q5vuc (8 records) · GBIF
Dataset
INSDC Sequences · doi:10.15468/sbmztx (4 records) · GBIF
Dataset
NOAA, Deep-Sea Coral Research and Technology Program · doi:10.15468/aqbftj (4 records) · GBIF
Query
https://api.gbif.org/v1/occurrence/search?decimalLatitude=15.5729,15.5929&decimalLongitude=-61.47199,-61.45199&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 “Leeward Caribbean Islands”
Hero photo
Near this sitegeotagged about 1.4 km from the site coordinates Gorgoniidae-Reproduction · Ebuxbaum · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Arrival photo
Near this sitegeotagged about 0.9 km from the site coordinates Elephant ear sponge (Agelas clathrodes) · Alexis Garretson · CC0 · iNaturalist
Gallery
7 photos, credited under each image
Species photos
Wikimedia Commons, credited with each species. Full list: Data & sources