Aliwal Shoal

The Aliwal Shoal is a rocky reef which is the remains of an ancient sand dune approximately 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) off the coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

The reef is inhabited by many kinds of hard and soft corals and other marine invertebrates, and a variety of tropical and subtropical fish species.

Aliwal Shoal has diverse marine life, including large predators, and is popular as a recreational scuba diving destination.

The type of rock was determined from samples recovered from the hull of the vessel Aimée Lykes, which struck the shoal in 1963, and made it to Durban for repairs.

[3] The adjacent coastline of KwaZulu-Natal has a humid subtropical climate with summer rainfall, and the freshwater and riverine sedimentary discharge into the region is significant and affects turbidity and plankton blooms.

This community has the lowest abundance of red foliose algae and occupies the reef top, inshore and offshore slopes of the northern, middle and southern regions at depths from 10 to 14 metres (33 to 46 ft).

[3] A second community inhabits the steep edges of the shoal and has larger proportion of Polychaetes, the soft coral Eleutherobia aurea, and the sponge Spheciospongia globularis.

This community covers the high to medium relief inshore and offshore walls and broken edges of the middle and northern regions in the 14 to 20 metres (46 to 66 ft) depth range.

The Crown area restricted zone is enclosed by 12 points, which lie on the 25 metres (82 ft) isobath, and covers approximately 2.5 square kilometres (0.97 sq mi).