The gulf of Aquaba is a huge rift in the ocean floor, thousands of meters deep. At the mouth of the gulf lies Tiran. Down the middle of the Straits of Tiran a huge ridge pushes up from the sea floor. On its four peaks coral reefs have formed. These are the reefs of Tiran. They are named after 19th century British cartographers: Gordon, Thomas, Woodhouse and Jackson. The strong currents which sweep these reefs bring schools of pelagic fish such as snapper, tuna, barracuda and jackfish, and with them come sharks. Grey reefs, white-tips, hammerheads, threshers, oceanic whitetips, leopard sharks and even tiger sharks have been seen here. The currents also provide nutrition for the corals and the reefs of Tiran are characterized by walls of brightly coloured corals and gorgonians.