Aquarium

Most patch reefs in the Florida Keys are a single structure — one coral formation rising from the sand, surrounded by open water. Aquarium is two. The site consists of a pair of separate reef patches close enough to explore on a single dive but distinct enough that each has its own character, its own ledges, and its own resident population of marine life.

The gap between the two patches is part of what makes the site productive. Sandy channels and open seafloor between coral structures are exactly the kind of habitat that Spiny Lobster gravitate toward — they tuck into the undercuts and crevices at the base of the reef edges where the coral meets the sand, and the double-patch layout at Aquarium means there's twice the edge habitat of a typical single-formation reef. During lobster season, from August through March, this site is one of IDC's go-to stops on the Lobster Charter. Outside of season, it remains a solid dive for reef fish, eels, and the kind of unhurried shallow-water exploration that suits newer divers and photographers equally well.