HISTORICAL SHIPWRECKS

USS Monitor   Hatteras, NC    The first ironclad warship commissioned by the U.S. Navy, and renowned for its epic Civil War battle against the Confederate’s Merrimac, the Monitor sank in 1862 while being towed off the coast of North Carolina.

Dixie Arrow    Hatteras, NC    Built in 1920, this freighter was torpedoed and sunk by a German U-boat in 1942, resulting in eleven sailors losing their lives. Sand Tiger sharks frequently gather on this wreck during mating season.

E. M. Clark    Hatteras, NC   Another casualty of German U-boats, this tanker was sunk in 1942; she sits in 240 feet of water, thus reachable only by those qualified as deep technical divers.

Proteus   Hatteras, NC      This passenger freighter was sunk during WWI when she collided with another vessel while attempting to evade marauding German U-boats. Sand Tiger sharks frequently gather on this wreck during mating season.

Hydro Atlantic    Boca Raton, FL    Considered to be one of the ten best dives in the U.S., this 320 foot long freighter sank in a storm in 1987 just outside the Boca Raton Inlet.

Northeastern    Hatteras, NC    This tanker ran aground in the shallow waters off Diamond Shoals during a gale in December 1904.

ARTIFICIAL REEF SHIPWRECKS

USNS Vandenberg   Key West, FL     The second largest artificial reef in the wold.  Scuttled in 2009.

Miller Lite   Pompano Beach, FL     This 186 foot long German cargo vessel was sunk in 1987 off Hillsboro Inlet.

Ancient Mariner – Deerfield Beach, FL      Formerly a U.S. Coast Guard vessel – turned dockside restaurant – the Mariner was sunk in 1991.

Captain Dan – Pompano Beach, FL     This 175 foot long U. S. Coast Guard buoy tender was sunk in 1990.

Lowrance – Pompano Beach, FL     At over 400 feet long, the Lowrance is one of the largest artificial reef wrecks off the coast of Florida.

Sucre – Pompano Beach, FL    This 200 foot freighter was sunk in 1996.

Submarine Nets   Pompano Beach, FL    Navy surplus submarine netting originally deployed in Puerto Rico, now a mile long artificial reef off the coast of Florida.

CAVES

Florida  Florida caves are very diverse, solution-style caves, inside of which one finds a wide variety of aquatic species and fossilized records of their evolution.

Mexico   Dry caves at one time which filled with fresh and salt water, Mexican caves are extensive sub-horizontal flooded networks filled with abundant speleothem deposits.

SHARKS

Sand Tiger Sharks - One of the most interesting of the “toothy” sharks.

Whale Sharks - Recognized as the largest shark in the ocean, and it eats some of the smallest creatures in it.

Lemon Sharks - Playful and active sharks that exhibit very social behaviors and patterns.

Tiger Sharks  -  Called by some as the “Bhudda of the ocean.”