Isolated from the outside world, Socotra has grown to be both the most strangely beautiful and the most unique place on planet Earth.
Rod Waddington/FlickrDragon’s blood trees, found only on Socotra,
SOME 150 MILES EAST OF THE HORN OF AFRICA and 250 miles south of the Arabian Peninsula lies the island of Socotra. Alone amid the vast expanse of the Indian Ocean, the Yemen-controlled island has remained remarkably isolated from the outside world for millennia.
And left in its own little bubble, it has grown to look like no other place on Earth — something that can be said about fewer and fewer places as the 21st-century ticks on.
Indeed, a third of the tiny island’s flora and fauna can’t be found anywhere else on the planet — but that may be changing. After centuries of virtual isolation, Socotra opened its first airport in 1999. Since then, tourism has grown by a factor of 30. Hotels and highways have gone up while flora and fauna populations have started to disappear.
“Changes that in other places took decades have been compressed into a few years here,” National Geographic wrote in 2012. “Some of Socotra’s admirers fear that the Yemeni government’s rush to bring the island into the 21st century may have already irreversibly damaged the very things those people came to see and could bring an end to a way of life that has endured for centuries.”
Perhaps as a means to limit — or at least slow — development’s deleterious effects on Socotra’s physical landscape, UNESCO deemed the island a World Heritage site in 2008, following long-underway conservation efforts to help protect the truly singular beauty of what just might be the most unique place on Earth.
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1 of 42Perhaps more than any other factor, Socotra’s trees account for the island’s unique allure. Above, a bottle tree grows out of the rocky terrain along the coast.Rod Waddington/Flickr 2 of 42That coastline — lined with massive cliffs looking down over water so turquoise it’s almost neon — is just the first of Socotra’s many, impossibly varied landscapes. Valerian Guillot/Flickr 3 of 42Beyond the coastal cliffs, you’ll find craggy, imposing mountains and plateaus, many of which (including the one above) conceal vast caverns.Rod Waddington/Flickr 4 of 42Inside these caves — like the Hawk Cave in Hala (above) — you can venture down to depths as great as 1,000 meters. Wikimedia Commons 5 of 42Back outside the caves and down the mountains, you’ll set out upon extensive sand dunes like little deserts unto themselves. Above: The Noget Sand Dunes.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 6 of 42But whether it’s the dunes, the mountains, the cliffs, or the caves, Socotra is home to some of the most utterly alien landscapes that can be found here on Earth.Rod Waddington/Flickr 7 of 42Equally alien, however, are the island’s endemic trees. And perhaps even more distinctive than the bottle tree is the dragon’s blood tree (above).KHALED FAZAA/AFP/Getty Images 8 of 42Named for its vividly red sap, the dragon’s blood tree has become the symbol of Socotra’s unique beauty.Rod Waddington/Flickr 9 of 42The red sap produced by the tree has become known the world over, and sought after since ancient times for uses ranging from ritual magic to breath freshener to lipstick.HopeHill/Flickr 10 of 42Because of the dragon’s blood tree’s commercial uses, and because of deforestation resulting from Socotra’s development more generally, these trees are suffering. Conservation efforts currently aim to protect the tree’s habitat and to restrict commercial usage – initiatives that have met with some success thus far.KHALED FAZAA/AFP/Getty Images 11 of 42While neither as large nor as fantastically named as the dragon’s blood tree, the bottle tree might just look even more extraterrestrial. With its unique shape and leaves allowing it to retain moisture in especially dry climates, this tree can grow right up out of the rocks. Rod Waddington/Flickr 12 of 42Small bottle trees dot the rocky landscape, sometimes surrounding the larger Frankincense trees (center).Rod Waddington/Flickr 13 of 42The Frankincense tree, between its many variations, has been prized since ancient times for its aromatic resin used in incense and perfumes.Rod Waddington/Flickr 14 of 42Not all of Socotra’s plant life is merely tan and green, however. The Adenium socotranum succulent, for one, produces bright pink flowers that stand out all the more against the surrounding landscape.Because of its rarity, size (15 feet), and difficulty of cultivation (decades of working and waiting), this plant has become highly esteemed among many horticulturalists.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 15 of 42As eye-popping as Socotra’s plants can be, the island’s diverse, bizarre animal population is just as fascinating.Above, an Egyptian vulture flies low over the beach.HopeHill/Flickr 16 of 42The Egyptian vulture, for one, while not endemic to Socotra, is unknown to the New World, and found only in the Middle East and India, central Africa, and small sections of southern Europe.Rod Waddington/Flickr 17 of 42This distinctive bird, with a legacy that goes back to Ancient Egypt, is even known for its use of tools (namely, using stones to crack eggs), an extraordinary rarity in the animal kingdom. Rod Waddington/Flickr 18 of 42While not as large or imposing as the Egyptian vulture, the Socotran starling is one of the island’s endemic species. Although its cousins can be found throughout most of the world, this particular variety can be found only here.Rod Waddington/Flickr 19 of 42Even smaller than the starling among Socotra’s winged creatures is the Bicyclus anynana butterfly. And like the starling, this butterfly has cousins all over the world, yet one special variety only found on Socotra.Some of these butterflies have been known to engage in a practice called mud puddling, in which they’ll obtain their nutrients by sucking them up, so to speak, from large qualities of mud and dung.Wikimedia Commons 20 of 42For more beauty on a small scale, Socotra offers the cowry, a sea snail found in various varieties here and across much of the Indian Ocean.The shells of these creatures (above) have long been so treasured that they’ve been used not just in jewelry, but as currency itself.Gerry & Bonni/Flickr 21 of 42But as much unique beauty as Socotra’s animals posses, the island’s vibrant landscapes likely remain its most stunning feature.Above: The beach at Rosh.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 22 of 42And most stunning among those various landscapes may very well be the first you’d encounter, were you to happen upon the island: the beaches.Gerry & Bonni/Flickr 23 of 42Socotra’s beaches are marked by massive sand dunes giving way to imposing mountains and cliffs marked by pitch-black caves and strange arboreal growths.Above: ArAr beach, on the east side of SocotraWikimedia Commons 24 of 42While not exactly natural, Socotra’s beaches are further distinguished from any others you’ve ever seen by the presence of abandoned Soviet tanks.Stationed there during the 1980s, when the Soviet Union was supporting South Yemen’s communist movement, these tanks have since broken down and sunken into the already bizarre landscape.Wikimedia Commons 25 of 42When not interrupted by abandoned tanks or cliffs, Socotra’s beaches present smooth, sweeping stretches of intensely white sand.Maria Victoria Rodriguez/Flickr 26 of 42These picture-perfect sands are rarely marred by rain. Overall, Socotra’s thoroughly pleasant climate stays between 70 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit year round.Above: Clouds roll in over the Detwah lagoon.Gerry & Bonni/Flickr 27 of 42This climate makes Socotra ideal for fishing, a longtime staple of the island’s economy — in addition to tourism, especially recently.Kelly Beckta/Flickr 28 of 42Many tourists flock to the island’s beaches and gorgeous plateaus sitting just above. Above: The view from the Homhil Plateau looking out toward the Arabian Sea.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 29 of 42These plateaus provide unbelievable lookout points amid the beaches’ nearly vertical limestone cliffs.HopeHill/Flickr 30 of 42Surprisingly, it is on these craggy cliffs that some of the island’s most incredible inhabitants can be found.Above, a frankincense tree grows out of a cliff’s edge near the Rosh area, noted for its unique marine wildlife.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 31 of 42Inland, past the coastal cliffs, sit Socotra’s dramatic, rocky mountains. Rod Waddington/Flickr 32 of 42As jagged and inhospitable as these mountains may seem, they receive the greatest percentage of the island’s rainfall, making them more able to support life.Jan/Flickr 33 of 42In addition to the rain, the mountain mists provide sustenance to the local flora. In fact, some of these unique plants can survive in such a desert-like environment largely because of the mists alone.Rod Waddington/Flickr 34 of 42But, while not exactly common, some of the mountain valleys and canyons come with freshwater streams, around which all manner of plants can grow. KHALED FAZAA/AFP/Getty Images 35 of 42Even without help from streams, Socotra’s endemic plants have adapted to thrive in even the roughest of mountain environments.Rod Waddington/Flickr 36 of 42Out of the mountains and down in the sands, some of Socotra’s trees and bushes emerge.Rod Waddington/Flickr 37 of 42It’s in these plains of sand and rock that Socotra’s landscapes are at their most Martian.Rod Waddington/Flickr 38 of 42However, it’s hard to beat the island’s salt pits for downright peculiarity. Gerry & Bonni/Flickr 39 of 42Same goes for Socotra’s enormous limestone caves.Maria Victoria Rodriguez/Flickr 40 of 42And, once again, the dragon’s blood trees.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 41 of 42But no matter how alien Socotra’s beauty seems, what this lost world truly proves is just how surprising, even after several millennia of human development, planet Earth can still be.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 42 of 42Like this gallery?Share it:
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41 Photos That Reveal The Otherworldly Beauty Of Socotra View Gallery
Next, have another look at Socotra’s bizarre dragon blood tree. Then, venture beyond Socotra and check out ten more of the most surreal places on Earth and surreal landscapes even more beautiful than they are weird. Finally, check out Nevada’s bizarelly beautiful Fly Geyser.
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1 of 42Perhaps more than any other factor, Socotra’s trees account for the island’s unique allure. Above, a bottle tree grows out of the rocky terrain along the coast.Rod Waddington/Flickr 2 of 42That coastline — lined with massive cliffs looking down over water so turquoise it’s almost neon — is just the first of Socotra’s many, impossibly varied landscapes. Valerian Guillot/Flickr 3 of 42Beyond the coastal cliffs, you’ll find craggy, imposing mountains and plateaus, many of which (including the one above) conceal vast caverns.Rod Waddington/Flickr 4 of 42Inside these caves — like the Hawk Cave in Hala (above) — you can venture down to depths as great as 1,000 meters. Wikimedia Commons 5 of 42Back outside the caves and down the mountains, you’ll set out upon extensive sand dunes like little deserts unto themselves. Above: The Noget Sand Dunes.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 6 of 42But whether it’s the dunes, the mountains, the cliffs, or the caves, Socotra is home to some of the most utterly alien landscapes that can be found here on Earth.Rod Waddington/Flickr 7 of 42Equally alien, however, are the island’s endemic trees. And perhaps even more distinctive than the bottle tree is the dragon’s blood tree (above).KHALED FAZAA/AFP/Getty Images 8 of 42Named for its vividly red sap, the dragon’s blood tree has become the symbol of Socotra’s unique beauty.Rod Waddington/Flickr 9 of 42The red sap produced by the tree has become known the world over, and sought after since ancient times for uses ranging from ritual magic to breath freshener to lipstick.HopeHill/Flickr 10 of 42Because of the dragon’s blood tree’s commercial uses, and because of deforestation resulting from Socotra’s development more generally, these trees are suffering. Conservation efforts currently aim to protect the tree’s habitat and to restrict commercial usage – initiatives that have met with some success thus far.KHALED FAZAA/AFP/Getty Images 11 of 42While neither as large nor as fantastically named as the dragon’s blood tree, the bottle tree might just look even more extraterrestrial. With its unique shape and leaves allowing it to retain moisture in especially dry climates, this tree can grow right up out of the rocks. Rod Waddington/Flickr 12 of 42Small bottle trees dot the rocky landscape, sometimes surrounding the larger Frankincense trees (center).Rod Waddington/Flickr 13 of 42The Frankincense tree, between its many variations, has been prized since ancient times for its aromatic resin used in incense and perfumes.Rod Waddington/Flickr 14 of 42Not all of Socotra’s plant life is merely tan and green, however. The Adenium socotranum succulent, for one, produces bright pink flowers that stand out all the more against the surrounding landscape.Because of its rarity, size (15 feet), and difficulty of cultivation (decades of working and waiting), this plant has become highly esteemed among many horticulturalists.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 15 of 42As eye-popping as Socotra’s plants can be, the island’s diverse, bizarre animal population is just as fascinating.Above, an Egyptian vulture flies low over the beach.HopeHill/Flickr 16 of 42The Egyptian vulture, for one, while not endemic to Socotra, is unknown to the New World, and found only in the Middle East and India, central Africa, and small sections of southern Europe.Rod Waddington/Flickr 17 of 42This distinctive bird, with a legacy that goes back to Ancient Egypt, is even known for its use of tools (namely, using stones to crack eggs), an extraordinary rarity in the animal kingdom. Rod Waddington/Flickr 18 of 42While not as large or imposing as the Egyptian vulture, the Socotran starling is one of the island’s endemic species. Although its cousins can be found throughout most of the world, this particular variety can be found only here.Rod Waddington/Flickr 19 of 42Even smaller than the starling among Socotra’s winged creatures is the Bicyclus anynana butterfly. And like the starling, this butterfly has cousins all over the world, yet one special variety only found on Socotra.Some of these butterflies have been known to engage in a practice called mud puddling, in which they’ll obtain their nutrients by sucking them up, so to speak, from large qualities of mud and dung.Wikimedia Commons 20 of 42For more beauty on a small scale, Socotra offers the cowry, a sea snail found in various varieties here and across much of the Indian Ocean.The shells of these creatures (above) have long been so treasured that they’ve been used not just in jewelry, but as currency itself.Gerry & Bonni/Flickr 21 of 42But as much unique beauty as Socotra’s animals posses, the island’s vibrant landscapes likely remain its most stunning feature.Above: The beach at Rosh.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 22 of 42And most stunning among those various landscapes may very well be the first you’d encounter, were you to happen upon the island: the beaches.Gerry & Bonni/Flickr 23 of 42Socotra’s beaches are marked by massive sand dunes giving way to imposing mountains and cliffs marked by pitch-black caves and strange arboreal growths.Above: ArAr beach, on the east side of SocotraWikimedia Commons 24 of 42While not exactly natural, Socotra’s beaches are further distinguished from any others you’ve ever seen by the presence of abandoned Soviet tanks.Stationed there during the 1980s, when the Soviet Union was supporting South Yemen’s communist movement, these tanks have since broken down and sunken into the already bizarre landscape.Wikimedia Commons 25 of 42When not interrupted by abandoned tanks or cliffs, Socotra’s beaches present smooth, sweeping stretches of intensely white sand.Maria Victoria Rodriguez/Flickr 26 of 42These picture-perfect sands are rarely marred by rain. Overall, Socotra’s thoroughly pleasant climate stays between 70 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit year round.Above: Clouds roll in over the Detwah lagoon.Gerry & Bonni/Flickr 27 of 42This climate makes Socotra ideal for fishing, a longtime staple of the island’s economy — in addition to tourism, especially recently.Kelly Beckta/Flickr 28 of 42Many tourists flock to the island’s beaches and gorgeous plateaus sitting just above. Above: The view from the Homhil Plateau looking out toward the Arabian Sea.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 29 of 42These plateaus provide unbelievable lookout points amid the beaches’ nearly vertical limestone cliffs.HopeHill/Flickr 30 of 42Surprisingly, it is on these craggy cliffs that some of the island’s most incredible inhabitants can be found.Above, a frankincense tree grows out of a cliff’s edge near the Rosh area, noted for its unique marine wildlife.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 31 of 42Inland, past the coastal cliffs, sit Socotra’s dramatic, rocky mountains. Rod Waddington/Flickr 32 of 42As jagged and inhospitable as these mountains may seem, they receive the greatest percentage of the island’s rainfall, making them more able to support life.Jan/Flickr 33 of 42In addition to the rain, the mountain mists provide sustenance to the local flora. In fact, some of these unique plants can survive in such a desert-like environment largely because of the mists alone.Rod Waddington/Flickr 34 of 42But, while not exactly common, some of the mountain valleys and canyons come with freshwater streams, around which all manner of plants can grow. KHALED FAZAA/AFP/Getty Images 35 of 42Even without help from streams, Socotra’s endemic plants have adapted to thrive in even the roughest of mountain environments.Rod Waddington/Flickr 36 of 42Out of the mountains and down in the sands, some of Socotra’s trees and bushes emerge.Rod Waddington/Flickr 37 of 42It’s in these plains of sand and rock that Socotra’s landscapes are at their most Martian.Rod Waddington/Flickr 38 of 42However, it’s hard to beat the island’s salt pits for downright peculiarity. Gerry & Bonni/Flickr 39 of 42Same goes for Socotra’s enormous limestone caves.Maria Victoria Rodriguez/Flickr 40 of 42And, once again, the dragon’s blood trees.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 41 of 42But no matter how alien Socotra’s beauty seems, what this lost world truly proves is just how surprising, even after several millennia of human development, planet Earth can still be.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 42 of 42Like this gallery?Share it:
Share
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And if you liked this post, be sure to check out these popular posts:
1 of 42Perhaps more than any other factor, Socotra’s trees account for the island’s unique allure. Above, a bottle tree grows out of the rocky terrain along the coast.Rod Waddington/Flickr 2 of 42That coastline — lined with massive cliffs looking down over water so turquoise it’s almost neon — is just the first of Socotra’s many, impossibly varied landscapes. Valerian Guillot/Flickr 3 of 42Beyond the coastal cliffs, you’ll find craggy, imposing mountains and plateaus, many of which (including the one above) conceal vast caverns.Rod Waddington/Flickr 4 of 42Inside these caves — like the Hawk Cave in Hala (above) — you can venture down to depths as great as 1,000 meters. Wikimedia Commons 5 of 42Back outside the caves and down the mountains, you’ll set out upon extensive sand dunes like little deserts unto themselves. Above: The Noget Sand Dunes.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 6 of 42But whether it’s the dunes, the mountains, the cliffs, or the caves, Socotra is home to some of the most utterly alien landscapes that can be found here on Earth.Rod Waddington/Flickr 7 of 42Equally alien, however, are the island’s endemic trees. And perhaps even more distinctive than the bottle tree is the dragon’s blood tree (above).KHALED FAZAA/AFP/Getty Images 8 of 42Named for its vividly red sap, the dragon’s blood tree has become the symbol of Socotra’s unique beauty.Rod Waddington/Flickr 9 of 42The red sap produced by the tree has become known the world over, and sought after since ancient times for uses ranging from ritual magic to breath freshener to lipstick.HopeHill/Flickr 10 of 42Because of the dragon’s blood tree’s commercial uses, and because of deforestation resulting from Socotra’s development more generally, these trees are suffering. Conservation efforts currently aim to protect the tree’s habitat and to restrict commercial usage – initiatives that have met with some success thus far.KHALED FAZAA/AFP/Getty Images 11 of 42While neither as large nor as fantastically named as the dragon’s blood tree, the bottle tree might just look even more extraterrestrial. With its unique shape and leaves allowing it to retain moisture in especially dry climates, this tree can grow right up out of the rocks. Rod Waddington/Flickr 12 of 42Small bottle trees dot the rocky landscape, sometimes surrounding the larger Frankincense trees (center).Rod Waddington/Flickr 13 of 42The Frankincense tree, between its many variations, has been prized since ancient times for its aromatic resin used in incense and perfumes.Rod Waddington/Flickr 14 of 42Not all of Socotra’s plant life is merely tan and green, however. The Adenium socotranum succulent, for one, produces bright pink flowers that stand out all the more against the surrounding landscape.Because of its rarity, size (15 feet), and difficulty of cultivation (decades of working and waiting), this plant has become highly esteemed among many horticulturalists.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 15 of 42As eye-popping as Socotra’s plants can be, the island’s diverse, bizarre animal population is just as fascinating.Above, an Egyptian vulture flies low over the beach.HopeHill/Flickr 16 of 42The Egyptian vulture, for one, while not endemic to Socotra, is unknown to the New World, and found only in the Middle East and India, central Africa, and small sections of southern Europe.Rod Waddington/Flickr 17 of 42This distinctive bird, with a legacy that goes back to Ancient Egypt, is even known for its use of tools (namely, using stones to crack eggs), an extraordinary rarity in the animal kingdom. Rod Waddington/Flickr 18 of 42While not as large or imposing as the Egyptian vulture, the Socotran starling is one of the island’s endemic species. Although its cousins can be found throughout most of the world, this particular variety can be found only here.Rod Waddington/Flickr 19 of 42Even smaller than the starling among Socotra’s winged creatures is the Bicyclus anynana butterfly. And like the starling, this butterfly has cousins all over the world, yet one special variety only found on Socotra.Some of these butterflies have been known to engage in a practice called mud puddling, in which they’ll obtain their nutrients by sucking them up, so to speak, from large qualities of mud and dung.Wikimedia Commons 20 of 42For more beauty on a small scale, Socotra offers the cowry, a sea snail found in various varieties here and across much of the Indian Ocean.The shells of these creatures (above) have long been so treasured that they’ve been used not just in jewelry, but as currency itself.Gerry & Bonni/Flickr 21 of 42But as much unique beauty as Socotra’s animals posses, the island’s vibrant landscapes likely remain its most stunning feature.Above: The beach at Rosh.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 22 of 42And most stunning among those various landscapes may very well be the first you’d encounter, were you to happen upon the island: the beaches.Gerry & Bonni/Flickr 23 of 42Socotra’s beaches are marked by massive sand dunes giving way to imposing mountains and cliffs marked by pitch-black caves and strange arboreal growths.Above: ArAr beach, on the east side of SocotraWikimedia Commons 24 of 42While not exactly natural, Socotra’s beaches are further distinguished from any others you’ve ever seen by the presence of abandoned Soviet tanks.Stationed there during the 1980s, when the Soviet Union was supporting South Yemen’s communist movement, these tanks have since broken down and sunken into the already bizarre landscape.Wikimedia Commons 25 of 42When not interrupted by abandoned tanks or cliffs, Socotra’s beaches present smooth, sweeping stretches of intensely white sand.Maria Victoria Rodriguez/Flickr 26 of 42These picture-perfect sands are rarely marred by rain. Overall, Socotra’s thoroughly pleasant climate stays between 70 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit year round.Above: Clouds roll in over the Detwah lagoon.Gerry & Bonni/Flickr 27 of 42This climate makes Socotra ideal for fishing, a longtime staple of the island’s economy — in addition to tourism, especially recently.Kelly Beckta/Flickr 28 of 42Many tourists flock to the island’s beaches and gorgeous plateaus sitting just above. Above: The view from the Homhil Plateau looking out toward the Arabian Sea.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 29 of 42These plateaus provide unbelievable lookout points amid the beaches’ nearly vertical limestone cliffs.HopeHill/Flickr 30 of 42Surprisingly, it is on these craggy cliffs that some of the island’s most incredible inhabitants can be found.Above, a frankincense tree grows out of a cliff’s edge near the Rosh area, noted for its unique marine wildlife.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 31 of 42Inland, past the coastal cliffs, sit Socotra’s dramatic, rocky mountains. Rod Waddington/Flickr 32 of 42As jagged and inhospitable as these mountains may seem, they receive the greatest percentage of the island’s rainfall, making them more able to support life.Jan/Flickr 33 of 42In addition to the rain, the mountain mists provide sustenance to the local flora. In fact, some of these unique plants can survive in such a desert-like environment largely because of the mists alone.Rod Waddington/Flickr 34 of 42But, while not exactly common, some of the mountain valleys and canyons come with freshwater streams, around which all manner of plants can grow. KHALED FAZAA/AFP/Getty Images 35 of 42Even without help from streams, Socotra’s endemic plants have adapted to thrive in even the roughest of mountain environments.Rod Waddington/Flickr 36 of 42Out of the mountains and down in the sands, some of Socotra’s trees and bushes emerge.Rod Waddington/Flickr 37 of 42It’s in these plains of sand and rock that Socotra’s landscapes are at their most Martian.Rod Waddington/Flickr 38 of 42However, it’s hard to beat the island’s salt pits for downright peculiarity. Gerry & Bonni/Flickr 39 of 42Same goes for Socotra’s enormous limestone caves.Maria Victoria Rodriguez/Flickr 40 of 42And, once again, the dragon’s blood trees.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 41 of 42But no matter how alien Socotra’s beauty seems, what this lost world truly proves is just how surprising, even after several millennia of human development, planet Earth can still be.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 42 of 42Like this gallery?Share it:
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1 of 42Perhaps more than any other factor, Socotra’s trees account for the island’s unique allure. Above, a bottle tree grows out of the rocky terrain along the coast.Rod Waddington/Flickr 2 of 42That coastline — lined with massive cliffs looking down over water so turquoise it’s almost neon — is just the first of Socotra’s many, impossibly varied landscapes. Valerian Guillot/Flickr 3 of 42Beyond the coastal cliffs, you’ll find craggy, imposing mountains and plateaus, many of which (including the one above) conceal vast caverns.Rod Waddington/Flickr 4 of 42Inside these caves — like the Hawk Cave in Hala (above) — you can venture down to depths as great as 1,000 meters. Wikimedia Commons 5 of 42Back outside the caves and down the mountains, you’ll set out upon extensive sand dunes like little deserts unto themselves. Above: The Noget Sand Dunes.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 6 of 42But whether it’s the dunes, the mountains, the cliffs, or the caves, Socotra is home to some of the most utterly alien landscapes that can be found here on Earth.Rod Waddington/Flickr 7 of 42Equally alien, however, are the island’s endemic trees. And perhaps even more distinctive than the bottle tree is the dragon’s blood tree (above).KHALED FAZAA/AFP/Getty Images 8 of 42Named for its vividly red sap, the dragon’s blood tree has become the symbol of Socotra’s unique beauty.Rod Waddington/Flickr 9 of 42The red sap produced by the tree has become known the world over, and sought after since ancient times for uses ranging from ritual magic to breath freshener to lipstick.HopeHill/Flickr 10 of 42Because of the dragon’s blood tree’s commercial uses, and because of deforestation resulting from Socotra’s development more generally, these trees are suffering. Conservation efforts currently aim to protect the tree’s habitat and to restrict commercial usage – initiatives that have met with some success thus far.KHALED FAZAA/AFP/Getty Images 11 of 42While neither as large nor as fantastically named as the dragon’s blood tree, the bottle tree might just look even more extraterrestrial. With its unique shape and leaves allowing it to retain moisture in especially dry climates, this tree can grow right up out of the rocks. Rod Waddington/Flickr 12 of 42Small bottle trees dot the rocky landscape, sometimes surrounding the larger Frankincense trees (center).Rod Waddington/Flickr 13 of 42The Frankincense tree, between its many variations, has been prized since ancient times for its aromatic resin used in incense and perfumes.Rod Waddington/Flickr 14 of 42Not all of Socotra’s plant life is merely tan and green, however. The Adenium socotranum succulent, for one, produces bright pink flowers that stand out all the more against the surrounding landscape.Because of its rarity, size (15 feet), and difficulty of cultivation (decades of working and waiting), this plant has become highly esteemed among many horticulturalists.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 15 of 42As eye-popping as Socotra’s plants can be, the island’s diverse, bizarre animal population is just as fascinating.Above, an Egyptian vulture flies low over the beach.HopeHill/Flickr 16 of 42The Egyptian vulture, for one, while not endemic to Socotra, is unknown to the New World, and found only in the Middle East and India, central Africa, and small sections of southern Europe.Rod Waddington/Flickr 17 of 42This distinctive bird, with a legacy that goes back to Ancient Egypt, is even known for its use of tools (namely, using stones to crack eggs), an extraordinary rarity in the animal kingdom. Rod Waddington/Flickr 18 of 42While not as large or imposing as the Egyptian vulture, the Socotran starling is one of the island’s endemic species. Although its cousins can be found throughout most of the world, this particular variety can be found only here.Rod Waddington/Flickr 19 of 42Even smaller than the starling among Socotra’s winged creatures is the Bicyclus anynana butterfly. And like the starling, this butterfly has cousins all over the world, yet one special variety only found on Socotra.Some of these butterflies have been known to engage in a practice called mud puddling, in which they’ll obtain their nutrients by sucking them up, so to speak, from large qualities of mud and dung.Wikimedia Commons 20 of 42For more beauty on a small scale, Socotra offers the cowry, a sea snail found in various varieties here and across much of the Indian Ocean.The shells of these creatures (above) have long been so treasured that they’ve been used not just in jewelry, but as currency itself.Gerry & Bonni/Flickr 21 of 42But as much unique beauty as Socotra’s animals posses, the island’s vibrant landscapes likely remain its most stunning feature.Above: The beach at Rosh.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 22 of 42And most stunning among those various landscapes may very well be the first you’d encounter, were you to happen upon the island: the beaches.Gerry & Bonni/Flickr 23 of 42Socotra’s beaches are marked by massive sand dunes giving way to imposing mountains and cliffs marked by pitch-black caves and strange arboreal growths.Above: ArAr beach, on the east side of SocotraWikimedia Commons 24 of 42While not exactly natural, Socotra’s beaches are further distinguished from any others you’ve ever seen by the presence of abandoned Soviet tanks.Stationed there during the 1980s, when the Soviet Union was supporting South Yemen’s communist movement, these tanks have since broken down and sunken into the already bizarre landscape.Wikimedia Commons 25 of 42When not interrupted by abandoned tanks or cliffs, Socotra’s beaches present smooth, sweeping stretches of intensely white sand.Maria Victoria Rodriguez/Flickr 26 of 42These picture-perfect sands are rarely marred by rain. Overall, Socotra’s thoroughly pleasant climate stays between 70 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit year round.Above: Clouds roll in over the Detwah lagoon.Gerry & Bonni/Flickr 27 of 42This climate makes Socotra ideal for fishing, a longtime staple of the island’s economy — in addition to tourism, especially recently.Kelly Beckta/Flickr 28 of 42Many tourists flock to the island’s beaches and gorgeous plateaus sitting just above. Above: The view from the Homhil Plateau looking out toward the Arabian Sea.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 29 of 42These plateaus provide unbelievable lookout points amid the beaches’ nearly vertical limestone cliffs.HopeHill/Flickr 30 of 42Surprisingly, it is on these craggy cliffs that some of the island’s most incredible inhabitants can be found.Above, a frankincense tree grows out of a cliff’s edge near the Rosh area, noted for its unique marine wildlife.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 31 of 42Inland, past the coastal cliffs, sit Socotra’s dramatic, rocky mountains. Rod Waddington/Flickr 32 of 42As jagged and inhospitable as these mountains may seem, they receive the greatest percentage of the island’s rainfall, making them more able to support life.Jan/Flickr 33 of 42In addition to the rain, the mountain mists provide sustenance to the local flora. In fact, some of these unique plants can survive in such a desert-like environment largely because of the mists alone.Rod Waddington/Flickr 34 of 42But, while not exactly common, some of the mountain valleys and canyons come with freshwater streams, around which all manner of plants can grow. KHALED FAZAA/AFP/Getty Images 35 of 42Even without help from streams, Socotra’s endemic plants have adapted to thrive in even the roughest of mountain environments.Rod Waddington/Flickr 36 of 42Out of the mountains and down in the sands, some of Socotra’s trees and bushes emerge.Rod Waddington/Flickr 37 of 42It’s in these plains of sand and rock that Socotra’s landscapes are at their most Martian.Rod Waddington/Flickr 38 of 42However, it’s hard to beat the island’s salt pits for downright peculiarity. Gerry & Bonni/Flickr 39 of 42Same goes for Socotra’s enormous limestone caves.Maria Victoria Rodriguez/Flickr 40 of 42And, once again, the dragon’s blood trees.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 41 of 42But no matter how alien Socotra’s beauty seems, what this lost world truly proves is just how surprising, even after several millennia of human development, planet Earth can still be.Valerian Guillot/Flickr 42 of 42Like this gallery?Share it:
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1 of 42Perhaps more than any other factor, Socotra’s trees account for the island’s unique allure. Above, a bottle tree grows out of the rocky terrain along the coast.Rod Waddington/Flickr
2 of 42That coastline — lined with massive cliffs looking down over water so turquoise it’s almost neon — is just the first of Socotra’s many, impossibly varied landscapes. Valerian Guillot/Flickr
3 of 42Beyond the coastal cliffs, you’ll find craggy, imposing mountains and plateaus, many of which (including the one above) conceal vast caverns.Rod Waddington/Flickr
4 of 42Inside these caves — like the Hawk Cave in Hala (above) — you can venture down to depths as great as 1,000 meters. Wikimedia Commons
5 of 42Back outside the caves and down the mountains, you’ll set out upon extensive sand dunes like little deserts unto themselves. Above: The Noget Sand Dunes.Valerian Guillot/Flickr
6 of 42But whether it’s the dunes, the mountains, the cliffs, or the caves, Socotra is home to some of the most utterly alien landscapes that can be found here on Earth.Rod Waddington/Flickr
7 of 42Equally alien, however, are the island’s endemic trees. And perhaps even more distinctive than the bottle tree is the dragon’s blood tree (above).KHALED FAZAA/AFP/Getty Images
8 of 42Named for its vividly red sap, the dragon’s blood tree has become the symbol of Socotra’s unique beauty.Rod Waddington/Flickr
9 of 42The red sap produced by the tree has become known the world over, and sought after since ancient times for uses ranging from ritual magic to breath freshener to lipstick.HopeHill/Flickr
10 of 42Because of the dragon’s blood tree’s commercial uses, and because of deforestation resulting from Socotra’s development more generally, these trees are suffering. Conservation efforts currently aim to protect the tree’s habitat and to restrict commercial usage – initiatives that have met with some success thus far.KHALED FAZAA/AFP/Getty Images
11 of 42While neither as large nor as fantastically named as the dragon’s blood tree, the bottle tree might just look even more extraterrestrial. With its unique shape and leaves allowing it to retain moisture in especially dry climates, this tree can grow right up out of the rocks. Rod Waddington/Flickr
12 of 42Small bottle trees dot the rocky landscape, sometimes surrounding the larger Frankincense trees (center).Rod Waddington/Flickr
13 of 42The Frankincense tree, between its many variations, has been prized since ancient times for its aromatic resin used in incense and perfumes.Rod Waddington/Flickr
14 of 42Not all of Socotra’s plant life is merely tan and green, however. The Adenium socotranum succulent, for one, produces bright pink flowers that stand out all the more against the surrounding landscape.Because of its rarity, size (15 feet), and difficulty of cultivation (decades of working and waiting), this plant has become highly esteemed among many horticulturalists.Valerian Guillot/Flickr
15 of 42As eye-popping as Socotra’s plants can be, the island’s diverse, bizarre animal population is just as fascinating.Above, an Egyptian vulture flies low over the beach.HopeHill/Flickr
16 of 42The Egyptian vulture, for one, while not endemic to Socotra, is unknown to the New World, and found only in the Middle East and India, central Africa, and small sections of southern Europe.Rod Waddington/Flickr
17 of 42This distinctive bird, with a legacy that goes back to Ancient Egypt, is even known for its use of tools (namely, using stones to crack eggs), an extraordinary rarity in the animal kingdom. Rod Waddington/Flickr
18 of 42While not as large or imposing as the Egyptian vulture, the Socotran starling is one of the island’s endemic species. Although its cousins can be found throughout most of the world, this particular variety can be found only here.Rod Waddington/Flickr
19 of 42Even smaller than the starling among Socotra’s winged creatures is the Bicyclus anynana butterfly. And like the starling, this butterfly has cousins all over the world, yet one special variety only found on Socotra.Some of these butterflies have been known to engage in a practice called mud puddling, in which they’ll obtain their nutrients by sucking them up, so to speak, from large qualities of mud and dung.Wikimedia Commons
20 of 42For more beauty on a small scale, Socotra offers the cowry, a sea snail found in various varieties here and across much of the Indian Ocean.The shells of these creatures (above) have long been so treasured that they’ve been used not just in jewelry, but as currency itself.Gerry & Bonni/Flickr
21 of 42But as much unique beauty as Socotra’s animals posses, the island’s vibrant landscapes likely remain its most stunning feature.Above: The beach at Rosh.Valerian Guillot/Flickr
22 of 42And most stunning among those various landscapes may very well be the first you’d encounter, were you to happen upon the island: the beaches.Gerry & Bonni/Flickr
23 of 42Socotra’s beaches are marked by massive sand dunes giving way to imposing mountains and cliffs marked by pitch-black caves and strange arboreal growths.Above: ArAr beach, on the east side of SocotraWikimedia Commons
24 of 42While not exactly natural, Socotra’s beaches are further distinguished from any others you’ve ever seen by the presence of abandoned Soviet tanks.Stationed there during the 1980s, when the Soviet Union was supporting South Yemen’s communist movement, these tanks have since broken down and sunken into the already bizarre landscape.Wikimedia Commons
25 of 42When not interrupted by abandoned tanks or cliffs, Socotra’s beaches present smooth, sweeping stretches of intensely white sand.Maria Victoria Rodriguez/Flickr
26 of 42These picture-perfect sands are rarely marred by rain. Overall, Socotra’s thoroughly pleasant climate stays between 70 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit year round.Above: Clouds roll in over the Detwah lagoon.Gerry & Bonni/Flickr
27 of 42This climate makes Socotra ideal for fishing, a longtime staple of the island’s economy — in addition to tourism, especially recently.Kelly Beckta/Flickr
28 of 42Many tourists flock to the island’s beaches and gorgeous plateaus sitting just above. Above: The view from the Homhil Plateau looking out toward the Arabian Sea.Valerian Guillot/Flickr
29 of 42These plateaus provide unbelievable lookout points amid the beaches’ nearly vertical limestone cliffs.HopeHill/Flickr
30 of 42Surprisingly, it is on these craggy cliffs that some of the island’s most incredible inhabitants can be found.Above, a frankincense tree grows out of a cliff’s edge near the Rosh area, noted for its unique marine wildlife.Valerian Guillot/Flickr
31 of 42Inland, past the coastal cliffs, sit Socotra’s dramatic, rocky mountains. Rod Waddington/Flickr
32 of 42As jagged and inhospitable as these mountains may seem, they receive the greatest percentage of the island’s rainfall, making them more able to support life.Jan/Flickr
33 of 42In addition to the rain, the mountain mists provide sustenance to the local flora. In fact, some of these unique plants can survive in such a desert-like environment largely because of the mists alone.Rod Waddington/Flickr
34 of 42But, while not exactly common, some of the mountain valleys and canyons come with freshwater streams, around which all manner of plants can grow. KHALED FAZAA/AFP/Getty Images
35 of 42Even without help from streams, Socotra’s endemic plants have adapted to thrive in even the roughest of mountain environments.Rod Waddington/Flickr
36 of 42Out of the mountains and down in the sands, some of Socotra’s trees and bushes emerge.Rod Waddington/Flickr
37 of 42It’s in these plains of sand and rock that Socotra’s landscapes are at their most Martian.Rod Waddington/Flickr
38 of 42However, it’s hard to beat the island’s salt pits for downright peculiarity. Gerry & Bonni/Flickr
39 of 42Same goes for Socotra’s enormous limestone caves.Maria Victoria Rodriguez/Flickr
40 of 42And, once again, the dragon’s blood trees.Valerian Guillot/Flickr
41 of 42But no matter how alien Socotra’s beauty seems, what this lost world truly proves is just how surprising, even after several millennia of human development, planet Earth can still be.Valerian Guillot/Flickr
42 of 42Like this gallery?Share it:
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41 Photos That Reveal The Otherworldly Beauty Of Socotra View Gallery
41 Photos That Reveal The Otherworldly Beauty Of Socotra View Gallery
41 Photos That Reveal The Otherworldly Beauty Of Socotra View Gallery
41 Photos That Reveal The Otherworldly Beauty Of Socotra View Gallery
41 Photos That Reveal The Otherworldly Beauty Of Socotra
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