Jay Scutti

The Jay Scutti is an artificial reef wreck in the South Broward County offshore zone — one of several deliberately sunk vessels located in close proximity in the warm Atlantic waters off Fort Lauderdale at approximately 21 meters (about 70 feet), contributing to one of the most densely packed artificial reef complexes in Southeast Florida. The concentration of wrecks in this section of the South Broward reef system creates a series of interlinked artificial reef environments that collectively attract impressive densities of reef fish, resident sharks, grouper, and sea turtles to a defined geographical zone visited by boat operators from across the Fort Lauderdale to Deerfield Beach dive corridor. The Jay Scutti has developed the character of a mature artificial reef in the time since its sinking: hull surfaces encrusted with encrusting corals, tube sponges, and gorgonians, and the structural spaces — holds, superstructure, and hull cavities — occupied by the resident community of South Florida reef species. Goliath grouper are reliably encountered at this site, as they are throughout the South Broward wreck zone: these remarkable fish, some weighing hundreds of pounds, have claimed the deeper structural features as prime territory and demonstrate the extraordinary recovery of a species that was once critically threatened by spearfishing. Their combination of enormous size, confident approach behavior, and patient hovering alongside divers makes goliath grouper encounters among the most memorable in South Florida diving. Large barracuda patrol the water column above the wreck. Schools of grunt, snapper, and spadefish fill the mid-water. Nurse sharks rest beneath overhangs. The proximity of the Jay Scutti to the Tracy/Ken Vitale and Robert Edmister wrecks allows progressive exploration of this reef complex on a single or multi-day dive outing, with each vessel offering its own distinct character within the shared ecosystem.