← Rock Pool Directory/ Spain/ Playa de El Zapillo

Playa de El Zapillo

Almería, Andalucía · Spain

What have people found?

Tube hermit crab, striped venus and striped hermit crab turn up here more than at our other rock pools. Nimble spray crab, mauve stinger and rough cockle are the usual finds. ~127 distinct species have been recorded here.

What is the best time to visit today?

Download the app to see the 7-day schedule.

See low tide times at Playa de El Zapillo for the next three days
  1. Sun 15 Nov~11:30
  2. Mon 16 Novin the dark~0:30~12:30
  3. Tue 17 Novin the dark~1:30~13:30

Every low tide each day, in local time at the shore.

Plan the week in Intertidal
  • A tide chart for every day, with the best window marked
  • Identify what you find from a photo
  • An alert when a good daylight low is coming

When do people visit?

JFMAMJJASOND

Most observations come from February and June.

What should you know before visiting?

Parking is about 550 meters away.
Arrive 45 minutes to an hour before low tide and leave as it turns. The water comes back faster than it left.
Grippy shoes beat sandals. Wet rock and algae are more slippery than they look. Rock pool safety
A rock pool is a fragile place. Look and photograph, take nothing. The rockpooling code

What lives at Playa de El Zapillo?

Species records from iNaturalist

Nimble Spray CrabPercnon gibbesi
Mauve StingerPelagia noctiluca
Rough CockleAcanthocardia tuberculata
Horn ShellThericium vulgatum
Mediterranean Red Sea StarEchinaster sepositus
snakelocks anemoneAnemonia viridis
Banded Dye-murexHexaplex trunculus
Common OctopusOctopus vulgaris
Red-mouthed Dog WinkleStramonita haemastoma
Striped Hermit CrabPagurus anachoretus
Tube Hermit CrabCalcinus tubularis
Striped VenusChamelea gallina
Atlantic Purple Sea UrchinParacentrotus lividus
red sea plumeAsparagopsis taxiformis
Anomia ephippiumAnomia ephippium
Scan this rock pool on your next visit.

Every organism named, every visit logged to your journal.