Tufia

Tufia is a protected natural area on Gran Canaria's east coast, its coastal zone preserving both the pre-Hispanic settlement archaeology of the island and the marine environment immediately offshore. The dive site bearing the name sits within or adjacent to this protected zone, its marine life reflecting the benefit of overlapping terrestrial and marine conservation in an area where both the above-water and underwater landscapes have been maintained in relatively undisturbed condition. The east coast of Gran Canaria has a character shaped by the Canary Current's cold, productive influence: the water here is noticeably different from the warm southern waters, and the marine community reflects this with species and abundances more typical of cool Atlantic upwelling than tropical Caribbean reef. This cooler character produces exceptional invertebrate life — the nudibranchs, sea slugs, and macro organisms that thrive in productive cool water — alongside the subtropical fish community that year-round warmth supports. The dive at Tufia unfolds on the volcanic basalt formations of the east coast, the rock colonised by the encrusting community appropriate to these nutrient-rich, slightly cooler waters. The algae-covered shallow sections transition into the richer sponge and anemone territory at mid-depth, with the overall impression of a healthy, productive reef that has not been intensively exploited. Fish life is varied and includes the angel sharks that characterise Gran Canaria's east coast dive sites — the sandy sections between basalt formations are prime habitat for these resting predators. The archaeological dimension of the Tufia protected area adds a context to diving here: you are visiting a site that humans have used and valued for millennia, and the layers of that history — visible in the landscape above water — give the dive an additional dimension of place and meaning beyond the purely biological. A thoughtful, rewarding dive in one of Gran Canaria's quieter protected zones.