This Hospital Ship Sank Off Albania’s Coast During World War II. Now, It’s Teeming With Marine Life

A new survey of the “Po” has revealed a thriving underwater ecosystem, including rare Mediterranean monk seals

Sarah Kuta | Daily Correspondent

September 9, 2026 1:57 p.m.

A striped fish underwater — Researchers spotted invasive devil firefish swimming around the wreck. S. Modugno et al., Frontiers in Ocean Sustainability, 2026 under CC BY 4.0

In 1941, enemy fire sank an Italian hospital ship off the coast of Albania. Now, more than eight decades later, the wreck is teeming with marine life, researchers report in a paper published July 26 in the journal Frontiers in Ocean Sustainability.

The ship, called the Po, was evacuating wounded Italian soldiers from Albania’s Vlora Bay on the night of March 14, 1941, when it was struck by a torpedo from a British Swordfish bomber. The Po quickly began taking on water and sank within about ten minutes, killing 23 of the 240 people aboard, including three Italian Red Cross workers. Edda Ciano, the daughter of Italian dictator Benito Mussolini and the wife of Italian foreign minister Galeazzo Ciano, was among the survivors.

Did you know? Hospital ships

During World War II, h ospital ships were protected under international humanitarian law. They were required to be painted white with green bands and red crosses and illuminated at night. On the night the Po sank, however, its lights had intentionally been kept off to avoid drawing attention to other ships anchored in the bay.

Today, the 443-foot-long shipwreck lies within the Karaburun-Sazan Marine Protected Area, submerged about 108 to 121 feet deep. Discovered by divers in 2005, it rests on a gently inclined shelf less than a mile off the coast.

The vessel is well preserved, with ceramic tiles still lining its bathrooms, fans still hanging from its ceilings and teak tables still “intact, clean and perfectly aligned with each other” on the bridge deck, Cesare Balzi wrote for X-Ray Mag in 2018.

Researchers were curious to know how the wreckage was affecting the local marine ecosystem. Between June 2022 and September 2024, they made 32 scientific dives to the Po, which they studied using high-resolution sonar surveys and 3D photography.

A diver next to part of a shipwreck under water — The 443-foot-long shipwreck lies within the Karaburun-Sazan Marine Protected Area. Mauro Pazzi

In total, the researchers observed 151 species, ranging from common fish to invertebrates and mammals. The findings suggest that the Po has transformed into an artificial reef, providing habitat and shelter for a diverse range of marine life.

“The structure may provide an occasional nursery area for coastal fish, support cephalopod reproduction and function as a temporary resting site for severely endangered marine mammals,” the researchers write in the paper.

They found that sponges, sea squirts, mussels, oysters and algae covered most of the vessel’s surface, while amberjacks, sea bass, wrasse, scorpionfish, goby and other species of fish floated in and around the ship. Scientists also spotted squid egg clusters attached to the vessel.

“The metal sheets provide a hard substrate for marine life to grow on,” lead author Simone Modugno, a marine biologist with the Institute for Research, Development and Experimentation on the Environment and Territory, tells BBC Wildlife magazine’s Helen Pilcher.

A diver directing a flashlight at what appears to be the wheel of a ship underwater — The Po is well preserved on the seafloor off the coast of Albania. Mauro Pazzi

Additionally, researchers observed a rare Mediterranean monk seal resting in the vessel—the first sighting of the endangered species in Vlora Bay since 1996. This finding suggests that the marine mammals may be seeking refuge on artificial reefs like the Po as their natural habitat is increasingly threatened by human activities.

An estimated 444 to 600 mature Mediterranean monk seals remain in the Mediterranean Sea and small areas of the Atlantic Ocean near northwest Africa. The population is gradually growing, but the species is still considered vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and endangered under the Endangered Species Act.

Mediterranean monk seals spend most of their time in water, but they waddle onto land periodically to rest and give birth. They historically ventured onto open beaches and into sheltered sea caves, but as tourism in the Mediterranean has ramped up, they’ve started searching for other sanctuaries.

A diver looking at a shipwreck underwater — The researchers observed 151 species at the wreck site. Mauro Pazzi

Scientists were also dismayed to find a handful of invasive devil firefish swimming around the wreck. The creatures are native to the warm waters of the western Indian Ocean and the Red Sea but are pushing northward into the more temperate waters of the Adriatic Sea.

Scientists think human-caused climate change is likely to blame for the influx of devil firefish and other invasive species, acting as a “driver and amplifier for the incursions of tropical and alien organisms,” Modugno tells Live Science’s Robyn White. Artificial reefs like the Po might be facilitating this expansion, serving as potential “stepping-stone habitats,” the researchers write.

Modugno is now developing a 3D model of the Po so that others can explore the shipwreck virtually. He tells BBC Wildlife magazine that he hopes the project will help promote conservation, tourism and the “enjoyment of underwater nature.”

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