Tuesday, August 07, 2012

A Lost World - The Island of Socotra

 

A Lost World - The Island of Socotra

    This  is an interesting island just off the horn of Africa  and
the coast of Yemen . The Somali Pirates  ply these waters.

   

    
 It is like being  on a different planet. These pictures  and
  information are excellent viewing  and  reading.  
  

SOCOTRA   ISLAND :  You have to see it to believe it.  This
   island simply blows away any notion  about what is considered "normal" for  a landscape on Earth.



Imagine waking up  one day on Socotra Island and taking  a
   good look around you.  After a  yelp of disbelief, you'd be
   inclined to think you were  transported to  another planet  -
   or  traveled to another era of Earth's evolution.  The second
   would  be closer to the truth for this island, which  is  part of
   a  group of 4 islands, has been geographically  isolated from
   mainland Africa for the last 6 or 7  million years.  Like the
   Galapagos Islands , this island is  teeming with 700  extremely
   rare  species of flora and fauna, a full 1/3 of  which are
   endemic; that is, found nowhere else on  Earth.
   






The climate is  harsh, hot, and dry, and yet - the  most
amazing plant life thrives there.   Situated in the Indian
   Ocean  250 km (155 miles) east of Somalia and 340  km
   (212  miles) southeast of   Yemen , the  wide sandy beaches
   rise  to limestone plateaus full of caves (some 7  kilometers
   (4.4  miles in length) and mountains up to 1525  meters
high (5007 feet).



The name Socotra  is derived from a Sanscrit name  meaning
"The  Island of Bliss." Is it  the beaches? The isolation and
   quiet?  Or  the strange and crazy botanical allure?  Alien-
   looking plants. H. P. Lovecraft's  secret inspiration?  Was the
   famous  Chtulhu myths creator aware of these   forbidding
   mountains with their hauntingly  weird flora? (Think of  plant
   mutations from his "The Color out of Space") We are  almost
   tempted to call Socotra the other "Mountains of  Madness" -
the trees and plants of this  island were preserved thru their
   long geological isolation with some  varieties being 20 million
   years  old. We begin with the dracena cinnibaris or  Dragon's
   Blood  Tree, the source of valuable resin for  varnishes, dyes,
   and  "cure-all" medicine; also (predictably) used in  medieval
   ritual  magic and alchemy.



The branches  spread out into the sky and from below  appear
   to hover over the landscape like so  many flying saucers.
   And  from above they have a distinct mushroom  look.

There is also the  Desert Rose (Adenium Obesium) which  looks
like nothing so much as a blooming  elephant leg.





Dorstenia Gigas  ... apparently does not require any soil  and
sinks roots straight into the bare  rock.





It also has a  distinct personality and likes to smile for  the
camera.



  
Somewhat similar  to the weird Dorstenia Gigas, is  this
"Bucha" vegetable, found as  far  north as Croatia . I hope
   it's  not pregnant with anything malignant inside this  sack.
   John  Wyndham (with his "The Day of the Triffids")  would've
   loved  it.



Also found in   Socotra 's landscape is the ever-strange  and
extremely rare Cucumber Tree  (Dendrosicyos Socotranum)  -
and, yes,  it is related to what's sitting in a pickle jar in  your
fridge.



Getting around  can be a challenge as there are almost  no
roads. Despite the  fact that this  island has around 40,000
inhabitants, the  Yemeni government put in the first  roads
   just 2  years ago - after negotiations with UNESCO,  which has
   declared this island a World Natural  Heritage Site.  I would
   prefer  a camel ride to what is bound to be a bumpy and  slow
   4x4  ride.  It is a quiet and peaceful enclave  in an otherwise
   troubled world. If you decide  to visit there, you can  forget
   about  beachfront hotels  and restaurants. This island  is
   geared  towards Eco-tourism and sustaining the  local
   economy and way of life.





This island is a  birder's paradise as well, with 140  different
species of birds ...10 of which  are not found anywhere else
   in  the world.  A unique Socotra Warbler,  Sunbird, Starling,
   Bunting, Sparrow and Cisticola are  among the ones found
   here.  There are also Socotra Cormorants.



Want to see some  fairy-tale (and possibly  haunted)
shipwrecks? There are diving tours  available. Hopefully, some
   IMAX crew would film it in all its  glory one day.



To give you a  glimpse of Socotra 's and
   Yemen 's, in general, totally  unique
   architecture, check out this place located  on
   the mainland .... Al Hajarah, Yemen -  walled
   city  in the mist.
  




   

Socotra is one of  those "lost world" islands  (separated
   from  the world six million years ago) where intrepid  travelers
   -  particularly those seeking exotic nature  and wildlife in  a
   remote  tropical setting - can go days on end without rubbing shoulders  with that less-than-endangered species,  tourists.
   Known  for decades as the  Galapagos-of-the-Indian-Ocean,
   it's  the world's tenth richest island for endemic  plant species.
   And the biggest island in the Middle  East is 125 kilometers
   (78  miles)in length and 45 kilometers (28 miles)  across.
   Meanwhile the landscape is one of  contrasts.  For example,
   it  has isolated nature preserves with dazzling  wildlife
   (including 900 species of plants and  the famous Dragon's
   Blood  Tree (Dracaena Cinnabara)  and the some of  rarest

 


   birds  that exist nowhere else in the world),  and  picturesque unspoiled sandy  beaches.

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