Olbia, Sardinia, Italy

Molarotto

Molarotto is a small granite islet rising offshore east of Tavolara and Molara, marking the outer edge of the Tavolara – Punta Coda Cavallo Marine Protected Area. Its exposed location, reached only by larger boats from Porto San Paolo or Olbia, makes it one of the wildest sites in northeastern Sardinia. The islet drops sharply underwater to about 45 metres on a granite and sandy base, with a circumnavigable perimeter of vertical walls, ridges and boulder fields. The walls below 25 metres support dense red gorgonian (Paramuricea clavata) forests, with yellow Eunicella cavolini fans on shallower sections, encrusting orange Astroides calycularis, yellow Parazoanthus axinellae and a rich sponge community. Pelagic encounters are a hallmark: amberjack, barracuda, dentex schools and the occasional tuna or sunfish in summer. Resident dusky groupers, brown meagre, conger eels, large octopus, moray eels and scorpionfish populate the rocks. Currents can be strong; reserved for advanced divers.