Common Dentex

Photo: Fabian Hertel · CC BY-NC

Packs of dentex up to 90 cm long cruise the deep margins of Cape Gelidonya's pinnacles from spring through autumn, hunting in cooperative groups that herd smaller fish against the reef walls. They are among the most commercially valuable and ecologically important predators in the Mediterranean, and their abundance here reflects the cape's remoteness and strong protection status. The deep blue water against the pale rock provides a spectacular backdrop for encounters with these powerful silvery fish.