The Brazilian struck in the 72nd minute to cancel out a first-half goal from compatriot Makelele at the Estadio Cidade de Coimbra.
A point apiece leaves the two sides in the bottom half of the Portuguese top flight, separated only by goal difference.
Academica's last home match ended in a memorable triumph over defending champions Porto, who saw their 54-match unbeaten run in the league come to a grinding halt.
And although Sergio Conceicao's side could not repeat those heroics, the hosts did deserve the half-time advantage handed to them by Makelele's strike three minutes before the interval.
Maritimo, who ended a three-game losing streak in the league with a 2-1 win at Arouca last time out, fought back in the second half, though, with the impressive Derley earning a share of the spoils.
