Numana the Italian Lembeh

David Salvatori · Issue 73, Jul/Aug 2013 · pp. 36–41

Products mentioned: Nikon D300, Nikon D300S, Nikon D800E, Seacam housing, Subal housing, Inon Z240 strobes, Retra snoot, Macromate lens

Numana is a small coastal town in the province of Ancona, not too far from the famous tourist centers of Rimini and Riccione. This stretch of twenty kilometers of coastline along the Adriatic Sea from Ancona to Numana is called the Conero Riviera, taking the name from the Conero mountain which overlooks this area. The steep limestone walls of the Conero mountain are the only “rocky island” in the sea of the sandy shores of the upper and middle Adriatic basin so all the small organisms requiring hard surfaces for living are concentrated here, finding the ideal conditions for their own survival. Also the organisms living on the surrounding sandy bottoms approach these rocks where life bustles. From a biological point of view then, the seabed off the Conero Riviera represents an extremely fascinating environment: the waters are green because they are rich in phytoplankton, a microalgae, whi…