The scoglio della formica: a natural paradise for divers
About a mile from the harbour of Porticello, there is a renowned paradise for diving lovers in the province of Palermo: the suggestive “Secca della formica”. It is made up of two rocks
outcropping on ancient routes, not known from nautical charts, and was the scene of shipwrecks of large vessels in Phoenician and Roman times.
“Scoglio della formica” takes its name from the small, outcropping part of its rocky mantle that takes the shape of an ant. This mountain reaches the surface from a depth of 60 metres and emerges from the water for about half a metre, in the middle of the Gulf of Porticello.
It is one of the most visited and popular diving spots in the area, thanks to the variety of its routes, due to the gigantic size of the mountain:
• easy;
• difficult;
• shallow;
• quite challenging;
• technical;
• recreational.
In its depths, inside a sea cave at a depth of eighteen metres, there is a statue of the Madonna del Lume, protectress of fishermen.
The “Formica” is also special because it sometimes holds fish species that have nothing to do with the typical Mediterranean fauna, but which, coming from tropical environments, have adapted to this marine area within a short time, for example parrotfish and small triggerfish.
It is also one of the most famous sites where you can admire an authentic rarity: black coral with pinkish-white branches. Among the gorgonian fans, you can then discover small organisms that live permanently among these branches too: shrimps, crinoids, colourful nudibranchs, a paradise for lovers of macro photography.
Numerous meetings can be enjoyed with tuna, moonfish, amberjacks, snappers, imperial bream and shoals of sea bream..
In times not so long ago, the Formica ecosystem was at great risk. In fact, it was practically a dump, everything was found underwater, as is still the case today because of the currents. It was the recognition of the Roman anchor by Sebastiano Tusa, an Italian archaeologist, that raised the urgency of protecting this shoal. For over twenty years, indeed, neither anchoring nor any fishing activity has been permitted within a radius of two hundred metres from the rock’s peak. Only mooring is permitted using the two large peaks specially secured at the base of the submerged rocks.