Southwest Reef - Nassau & New Providence
Matanilla Reef, out in the Florida Keys, often feels like a proper blue-water dive, a bit of a departure from the usual reef crawls. We’ve bumped into some surprising pelagics here – everything from bigeye tuna shooting past to the occasional swordfish. It’s got that deeper, wilder feel, where you keep one eye on the reef and the other scanning the blue for something substantial. You might even spot a sperm whale or a Florida lobsterette if you’re lucky and paying attention. This site really suits divers comfortable with a bit of open water and those looking for a different kind of Keys experience, less about intricate coral and more about the big stuff swimming by.
- Location
- Nassau & New Providence, Bahamas, Caribbean
- Coordinates
- 24.890833, -77.526390
- Type
- reef
Marine Protected Area: Southwest New Providence Marine Managed Area
Best Time to Dive in Nassau & New Providence
The warmest water temperatures in Nassau & New Providence occur in August, averaging 30.4°C (up to 34.0°C). The coolest conditions are in February at 24.6°C.
Monthly Water Temperatures
- January: 24.7°C (air: 21.2°C)
- February: 24.6°C (air: 23.5°C)
- March: 24.9°C (air: 23.8°C)
- April: 26.1°C (air: 25.4°C)
- May: 27.5°C (air: 26.5°C)
- June: 29.0°C (air: 28.2°C)
- July: 30.1°C (air: 29.3°C)
- August: 30.4°C (air: 29.6°C)
- September: 30.0°C (air: 29.0°C)
- October: 28.9°C (air: 27.5°C)
- November: 27.2°C (air: 25.5°C)
- December: 25.6°C (air: 22.8°C)
Nearby Dive Sites in Nassau & New Providence
- Abaco - 5-20m (reef)
- ARIMAR - 6m (wreck)
- Bahamas Divers
- Current Cut - 10-25m (drift)
- Current Island - 10-25m (drift)
- Dean's Blue Hole (reef)
- Dean's Blue Hole (wall)
- De La Salle Wreck (wreck)
- DELIVERANCE (POSSIBLY) - 0m (wreck)
- Devil s Backbone
- Dog Rocks Reef - 25m (reef)
- Egg Reef (reef)
- FANTOME - 15m (wreck)
- Glass Window Bridge - 15-30m (wreck)
- Lost Blue Hole (cenote)
Nearest Dive Centres to Southwest Reef
Marine Life in Nassau & New Providence
Home to 539 recorded species including 455 reef fish, 24 hard corals, 19 whales & dolphins, 11 sharks & rays, 9 sea snails & nudibranchs, 4 other.
Notable Species
- Blainville's Beaked Whale (Mesoplodon densirostris) - Whales & Dolphins
- Elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata) - Hard Corals
- Cowfish (Tursiops truncatus) - Whales & Dolphins
- Dwarf sperm whale (Kogia sima) - Whales & Dolphins
- Sperm Whale (Physeter macrocephalus) - Whales & Dolphins
- Blue Doctor (Acanthurus coeruleus) - Reef Fish
- Mustard hill coral (Porites astreoides) - Hard Corals
- Finger Coral (Porites porites) - Hard Corals
- Dark Green Parrotfish (Sparisoma viride) - Reef Fish
- Barber (Acanthurus bahianus) - Reef Fish
- Massive Starlet Coral (Siderastrea siderea) - Hard Corals
- Gutong (Scarus iseri) - Reef Fish
- Great star coral (Montastraea cavernosa) - Hard Corals
- Common lionfish (Pterois volitans) - Reef Fish
- Atlantic spotted dolphin (Stenella frontalis) - Whales & Dolphins
- Gutong (Sparisoma aurofrenatum) - Reef Fish
- French grunt (Haemulon flavolineatum) - Reef Fish
- Schoolmaster (Lutjanus apodus) - Reef Fish
- Staghorn coral (Acropora cervicornis) - Hard Corals
- Parrotfish (Thalassoma bifasciatum) - Reef Fish
Recommended Packing List for Southwest Reef
Based on average water temperature of 27.4°C, currents 7 cm/s.
- Shorty or Rashguard - warm 27°C water needs minimal exposure protection
- Mask - essential for every dive
- Fins
- BCD - buoyancy compensator
- Regulator - your most safety-critical piece of gear
- Dive Computer - tracks depth, time, and NDL
- Surface Marker Buoy (SMB) - essential for boat pickups
- Dive Torch - useful for crevices and colour at depth
- Underwater Camera - capture your diving memories