Today’s article will discuss the oceans surrounding Santorini.
Santorini is an island off the coast of Greece, located in the Aegean sea. Santorini is approximately 104.57 nautical miles (120.337007 miles or 193.66364 kilometers from the nearest mainland area, which is Greece. It is a part of the Cyclades Islands, which is an archipelago located between Attica & Crete. There are approximately 220 islands classified within this archipelago.
It is extremely popular for its beautiful white houses, with blue roofs. It is also popular for its boating tours of rocky coves & inlets. Santorini has 2 main cities, those cities being Fira, & Oia. The beautiful rugged cliffs attract many eco-tourists, seeking the beauty of the island. Many tourists from around the Mediterranean enjoy Santorini for its unique seafood, as their cuisine is considered to be very high-class.
Their beautiful dark sand beaches are also regarded extremely highly. Santorini is very biodiverse, & has beautiful underwater ecosystems housing thousands of animals. For this reason, scuba diving is also extremely popular as it gives people the opportunity to see the beauty of it. From sea hares to sea squirts, Santorini is filled with beautiful marine aanimals the most prominent of which will be featured in this article.
Santorini is also held in very high regard for its red sand, & white sand beaches. These beaches are known as the Red Beach, & the White Beach. The red beach got its color from volcanic activity destroying the cliff, & exposing rocks that were rich with iron.
In this article, we will discuss the Salinity, Tides, Temperatures, & Marine Geography, of the island, the most prominent ecosystems of the island, The documented marine flora & Fauna, & Finally, & how ocean acidification has affected the island. With that being said, let us delve into the oceans surrounding the volcanic isle of Santorini, Greece.
The Tides, Temperatures, Salinity, Marine Geography, & Basic Information Of Santorini
Santorini is in the Mediterranean Sea, meaning that it will have a higher salinity than the Pacific Ocean. The current Salinity of the AAegeanSea is 38.5 parts per thousand on average, making it one of the saltiest places on Earth. Salinity is measured in 1,000-gram increments of water. For every 1000 grams of water, there will be a certain number of grams that are pure salt. This is the way that salinity is currently measured. There are no external factors currently that seem to be affecting the salinity either.
The Tidal charts for Santorini can be found on a variety of websites, a few of which are https://tides4fishing.com, https://www.tideschart.com, https://tidechecker.com, & finally https://tidechecker.com. It seems that the tide rarely gets over 0.5 meters (1.64042 feet) on any given day.
The oceanic temperatures can be found on similar websites, including https://www.seatemperature.org, https://seatemperature.info, https://seatemperature.net, & finally http://worldseatemp.com. There is an annual oceanic temperature average of 74.6° Fahrenheit (23.66667 Celsius).
Santorini doesn’t have a high riptide, so it is very safe to swim. No wetsuit is needed to comfortably swim at this temperature. Santorini is not very polluted, & is in fact rather clean. Snorkeling, & Scuba diving are extremely popular in the region for this reason. Eco-tourism has also become increasingly important, as their trees, coves, & reefs are becoming steadily popular.
The deepest oceanic area within 5 nautical miles (5.7539 miles or 9.26 kilometers) of Santorini is approximately 1892.6 feet (576.86448 meters) deep. There is a marine protected area on the island but it does not encompass the entire island. The main thing that comprises the oceanic floor is rock, seaweed, & compressed sand.
The Most Prominent Marine Ecosystems Of Santorini
Ecosystem Type 1: Rocky Reefs
Rocky reefs are similar to coral reefs, in that they are essentially a hub for oceanic life. They usually have interesting rock formations, that work similarly to holes in coral, in that they both provide protection from predators. These rocky reefs are usually less biodiverse though, & are usually in deeper areas of the ocean. These reefs are usually more intricate as well, as they usually have fish living inside of them, & tunnel systems. These types of ecosystems are usually found the furthest offshore.
Ecosystem Type 2: Seagrass Meadows
Seagrass meadows are extremely common around Santorini, & can occasionally impede swimmers & pedestrians. Due to the large amount of seagrass that washes ashore, it can be difficult to walk along the beach. Seagrass meadows are popular areas for breeding, fish spawning, & hunting. The most common seagrass species around Santorini is Posidonia Oceanica (Mediterranean Tapeweed / Neptune Grass). These types of ecosystems can be found close to the coast or far offshore. They can be found 2 meters (6.56168 feet) deep to 45 meters (147.638 feet) deep. These seagrass meadows play an integral part in producing oxygen, & digesting carbon dioxide, so it is important to not pollute or otherwise harm them.
Ecosystem Type 3: Sandy Flats
The sandy flats are areas of the ocean that are barren of much life & only have a few marine invertebrates & occasionally seagrass. They usually have things such as crabs & rarely, sea cucumbers & anemones. In this area, salinity levels are usually highest as they are found so close to the coast. These however are some of the ecosystems that have been impacted by oceanic acidification, & temperature changes caused by global warming. Temperatures have skyrocketed in areas that are usually much cooler forcing these animals out of their domiciles. Coastal areas were once some of the coldest oceanic areas for this area & now that temperatures have skyrocketed they have no reliable place to find these colder areas. These areas are usually also the closest to land unless there is a rocky reef jutting up directly against the shoreline.
The Documented Marine Flora Of Santorini
As mentioned in the subsection titled “Ecosystem No. Type 2: Seagass Meadows”, the main oceanic seagrass species found around Santorini is Posidonia Oceanica. This seagrass will often grow in massive colonies, known as meadows. Usually, their colonies grow at depths of 3.3 to 114.8 feet deep. When the plant blades die, they form into balls, which are known as the “Olive of the Sea”. Their fruits are also known as Neptune balls & will often wash up along the coastline. They often plague the beaches & make for a strange sight to see. They usually don’t impede visitors, but they can. These Neptune balls are brown, & somewhat crunchy.
The interesting thing about this species is that it can absorb carbon dioxide in huge droves. This species is able to soak up 15 more times carbon dioxide than a similar-sized piece of the Amazon Rainforest in South America. Their fruits are also important as they are basically just dense balls of dead Neptune grass leaves. These dense balls are able to trap plastics within them & then carry these plastics to the shoreline where people can discard them.
These species aren't threatened with extinction as of 2025. Posidonia Oceanica is usually bright green, however it may turn brown as it ages. It usually grows between 7.87402 inches (20.0000108 centimeters) & 15.748 inches (39.99992 centimeters) tall. It also grows usually to be 10 millimeters (0.393701 inches or 1 centimeter) wide. There are other species of seagrass, but we are unable to confirm exactly what species there are, & for that reason, we cannot provide information on them.
The Documented Marine Fauna Of Santorini
Santorini is semi-biodiverse as it is in a convenient location for animals to migrate back & forth to. Additionally, Santorini has extremely favorable conditions. Their historical seagrass meadows, & their beautiful volcanic rock formations attract not only new types of fauna but also tourists. Divers flock to Santorini as to many, the island is a paradise. Many marine photographers adore Santorini as well their waters are crystal clear, making the animals easier to find. Generally, though, these animals are hard to find because they like to hide.
The majority of the marine life doesn’t come very close to shore either, & has to be found out to sea. This is why scuba diving is much more popular than snorkeling. As of 2025, there are no accepted endemic marine species to Santorini.
Now, for this article, we will not include nudibranchs, sea slugs, sea snails, planktons, lichens, sea worms, or sea urchins, as there are just too many of them. With that being said, the list of all the most prominent species currently found around Santorini: Hippocampus Hippocampus (Short-Snouted Seahorse), Aplysina Aerophoba (Yellow Sponge), Sygnathoides Typhle (Broadnosed Pipefish), Clavelina Lepadiformi (Light Bulb Sea Squirt), Rhopilema Nomadica (The Nomad Jellyfish), Pelagia Noctiluca (Purple People Eater / Night Light Jellyfish), Dardanus Arrorsor (Mediterranean Hermit Crab), Clibanariuserythropuss (Hermit Crab), Holothuria Tubulosa (Tubular Sea Cucumber), Holothuria Sanctori (Sea Cucumber), Enchinaster Sepostitus (Mediterranean Red Starfish), Sparisoma Cretense (Mediterranean Parrotfish), Tripterygion Delaisi (Black-faced Blenny), Pterois Miles (Devil Firsfish), Raja Radula (Rough Ray), Symphodus Tinca (East Atlantic Peacock Wrasse), Labrus Merula (Brown Wrasse), & finally Coris julis (Mediterranean Rainbow Wrasse).
Directories / Credits
Citation No. 1: “Posidonia”, Written By Angel Pérez-Ruzafa, Paolo Guidetti, Carla Morris, Lorenz Schwork, & Published at an Unknown Date. Published by Science Direct. Retrieval Date: September 21st, 2023.
Citation No. 2: “Santorini, Marine Life”, Written by Unknown & Published at an Unknown Date. Published by Dive In Action. Retrieval Date: September 21st, 2023.
Citation No. 3: “Marine Conservation”, Written By Unknown & Published at an Unknown Date. Published By Archipelago. Retrieval Date: September 21st, 2023.
Citation No. 4: “Scuba To Snorkel, Diving In Santorini”, Written By Unknown & Published at an Unknown Date. Published Orbizz. Retrieval Date: September 21st, 2023.
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