Ma kēlā ʻaoʻao o ka honua, i waenakonu o kahi moana ʻē aʻe, aia ka lua o Galapagos: ʻo ka mokupuni mamao ʻo Socotra kahi i ʻike ʻole ʻia ai ma mua o ka hapakolu o nā mea kanu 800 a i ʻole ma kahi ʻē aʻe ma ka honua, e pili ana i kahi prehistoric exoticism i kapa ʻia ʻo ka wahi malihini loa ma ka honua. ʻEleʻele nā centipedes ʻeleʻele nui i ka rose wao nahele e noho ana ma ka pali (Adenium obesum), he kumu lāʻau i uhi ʻia i ka ʻili ʻālohilohi e wiwi mālie a māhele ʻia i mau lālā iwi, he pua ʻalani palupalu e hū ana mai kēlā me kēia piko; he mea ʻokoʻa ia o ka palupalu ma kahi wahi aloha ʻole. Ma nā ʻāina kiʻekiʻe, ʻōpuʻu nā pāpaʻi ʻāina ʻo Socotran ma nā pōhaku. Noho lākou ma kahi a me ke kiʻekiʻe o 2,300 kapuaʻi, ʻaʻole lākou e ʻike i ka moana India ma lalo. ʻO kahi kokoke i ʻelua hapakolu o ka mokupuni ʻo 1,400 sq. mile he paka aupuni i pale ʻia.

Ulu wale ka lāʻau koko deragona a Socotra (Dracaena cinnabaribe) ma ka pāpū. ʻO ke kohu ʻulaʻula e hāʻawi ai i kēia lāʻau i kona inoa, ua manaʻo ʻia e ka poʻe kālepa he koko maoli o ka deragona, me nā kumu lāʻau ikaika. ʻO nā kumulāʻau, e kū nei i hoʻopuehu ʻia ma nā ʻāina kiʻekiʻe, ua like ia me nā umbrella nunui i puhi ʻia e ka makani. Hoʻopili ʻia ko lākou mau lālā ma mua o ka lahilahi ʻana i nā lau mānoanoa a kiko.

I ke kauwela, a i ʻole ke kau makani e like me ka 44,000 o ka poʻe kamaʻāina i kapa ʻia ai, ʻaʻole nui nā kai e hiki ai i nā malihini ke holo i loko o ka mokupuni. Ma ke kapakai, i ka wā o ke kau, lele ka makani i ke one keʻokeʻo ma luna o nā pali limestone, a lilo i mau puʻu i ʻoi aku ma mua o ka hapalua mile ke kiʻekiʻe. Ma ko lākou kumu, pili nā mea kanu paʻakikī i ka pōhaku ʻulaʻula - ʻo Dorstenia gigas, ka fig Socotran, ʻaʻole pono i ka lepo e ulu ai. I loko o kahi puʻu mangrove sultry ma hope o ke kahakai ʻo Shaʻub, he lua mehameha i hoʻopaʻa ʻia e nā pali ʻeleʻele kiʻekiʻe ma kēlā ʻaoʻao kēia ʻaoʻao, ua holo nā kaukani lāʻau kekee i ke one; ma Socotra, ulu nā aʻa kumu, ʻaʻole i lalo.

Ma waho aʻe o nā mea olaola a me nā anthropologists, he kakaikahi wale nō ka poʻe mākaʻikaʻi e noho ma ka mokupuni i kēlā me kēia makahiki. Ma waho aʻe o nā pilikia o ke kaiapuni, aia kekahi kumu nui i hele mai ka poʻe i waho i kēia keʻena hana o ka evolution: ʻo Socotra kahi ʻāpana o ka lāhui pilikia o Yemen.

ʻO Yemen, ke hilinaʻi nei a hiki i ka 80% o kāna mau loaʻa ma ka ʻaila e pau ana, ke manaʻo nei i ka mākaʻikaʻi e hāʻawi i kahi kumu kālā hoʻomau. ʻOiaʻiʻo, ke makemake nei ke aupuni, nāna i kāohi ke komo ʻana i ka mokupuni ʻo 1,400 sq. Akā, pono ʻoe e hele ma ka ʻāina nui e hiki ai i Socotra a ke kāohi ʻia nei ka huakaʻi kaiaola e ka makaʻu iā al-Qaeda a me ka ʻaihue ʻana i nā haole no ke kumu kūʻai ma ka ʻāina nui. (A, i ka wā i hala ʻole, ua ʻike ʻo Socotra i kāna ʻāpana o ka pilikia: ʻo nā hulks o nā pahu Soviet e kū ana i ka ʻōpala ma kona mau kahakai komohana.) No laila i kēia manawa, noho mehameha nā kahakai keʻokeʻo lōʻihi o Socotra a me nā wai turquoise translucent.

Hiki ke ʻoliʻoli ʻia ka Environmentalist no ka pale ʻia ʻana o ka hiki ʻana mai o ka mākaʻikaʻi lehulehu, akā naʻe, ʻo ka mea kanu kahiko a me nā holoholona holoholona o ka mokupuni ua pōʻino a pilikia - i hoʻopilikia ʻia e ke kanaka komo ʻana, nā mea kanu a me nā holoholona i lawe ʻia mai a, e ʻōlelo ana kekahi poʻe ʻepekema, hoʻololi i ke aniau. ʻO nā kao, ʻaʻole ia he ʻōiwi, ʻo ia kekahi o nā mea hoʻoweliweli koʻikoʻi o Socotra, e ʻai ana a keakea i nā ulu hou a pau ma ko lākou ala. ʻO ka kumulāʻau kūkaʻa kakaʻikahi (Dendrosicyos socotranum), he 12 kapuaʻi nui e ulu ana i nā lau broccoli a me kahi pili o ka kukumba, ke ʻoki ʻia nei no ka lāʻau i ka haʻalele ʻana o Socotrans i ko lākou nohona kuʻuna, neʻe i waho o nā ana a i loko o nā hale o ke kūlanakauhale nui. o Hadibo a i ʻole nā wahi noho liʻiliʻi. I kēia manawa, haʻohaʻo ka poʻe ʻepekema i nā hōʻike i kēia manawa, ʻaʻohe kumu maoli hou o ka lāʻau koko deragona. ʻOiai ke kuhikuhi nei kekahi poʻe ʻepekema i ka hoʻololi ʻana i ke aniau a i ʻole nā mea ʻē aʻe, ʻo Meetag Moqbel, he mea hoʻomaʻamaʻa botanist a me ke alakaʻi ʻo Socotran, he pane maʻalahi: "Ke hoʻopiʻi nei au i nā kao."

ʻAʻole pono ka poʻe mākaʻikaʻi e holo i ke kai e hiki ai i Socotra. Hiki iā ʻoe ke lele ma laila mai ke kapikala ʻo Yemeni ʻo Sanaʻa ma kekahi o nā mokulele maʻamau i hoʻomaka e hana i ka makahiki 1999. Mai manaʻo e hoʻohana i nā kaʻa lehulehu ma ka mokupuni - aia wale nō ʻelua mau alanui paʻa, no laila ma kahi o $100 i ka lā , ʻO ka koho wale nō he huakaʻi holoʻokoʻa me ka 4 × 4, ka mea hoʻokele a me ke alakaʻi ʻōlelo Pelekania, nā meaʻai a me nā hale lole. ʻIke nā alakaʻi i nā wahi maikaʻi loa e snorkel ma luna o nā ʻākoʻa pale ʻia i piha i nā iʻa a me nā honu a he ʻike paʻakikī i ke ola mea kanu o ka mokupuni.

Hāʻawi ʻia ka poʻe kipa e hana nei i kahi hale hōʻikeʻike ola i hoʻonohonoho ʻia e kūʻē i kahi ʻāina weliweli, me he mea lā ʻaʻole hiki ke noho ʻia. Ua uhi ʻia kahi pāpū limestone nui i ka hapa nui o ka mokupuni, i ʻoki ʻia ma waena o nā mauna ʻo Hajhir mauna i hiki ke kipa ʻia ma ka wāwae a i ʻole ke kāmelo. Ua ʻoki ʻia ka ua i loko o ka limestone hiki ke hoʻokumu i kahi ʻupena o nā ana nunui, a kahe nā kahawai wai ma lalo o ka lepo mai nā puka o nā ana pali ma luna o ke kahakai. Hiki ke makaikai i kekahi mau ana maloo. ʻO nā keiki kūloko - ka poʻe e kamaʻilio ma kā lākou ʻōlelo Socotri i kākau ʻole ʻia ma mua o ka Islam - e alakaʻi iā ʻoe i lalo o nā kaila mile ka lōʻihi e hāmama ana i loko o nā ana nui o ka ballroom me nā stalactites weliweli e ʻālohilohi ana ma lalo o ke kukui. I kekahi manawa e loaʻa iā ʻoe kahi pipi Socotran pygmy 3 kapuaʻi, e ʻai ana i nā mosses i loko.

Makemake ʻo Omar Babelgheith, ke kuhina nui o Yemeni no ka mākaʻikaʻi, e hele mai nā mākaʻikaʻi akā ʻōlelo lākou ʻaʻole pono lākou e manaʻo i ka waiwai. "No ka mea ʻo Socotra kahi kahua hoʻoilina honua UNESCO i pale ʻia, ʻaʻole hiki iā mākou ke kūkulu i nā hōkele nui a i ʻole hana i kekahi mea e hoʻopilikia ai i nā wahi noho," wahi āna. Akā, koi ʻo ia e palekana lākou. “ʻO Socotra ka mokupuni palekana loa ma Yemen; ʻAʻole loa mākou i loaʻa kekahi pilikia palekana ma laila. Manaʻo ka poʻe he pilikia ʻo Yemen, akā ʻaʻole like ka lohe ʻana i ka nūhou me ka ʻike ʻana iā ʻoe iho.

He aha e lawe ʻia mai kēia ʻatikala:

the remote island of Socotra where more than one third of the 800 or so local plant species are found nowhere else on earth, endemic to a place of prehistoric exoticism that has been called the most alien-looking location on the planet.
The rare cucumber tree (Dendrosicyos socotranum), a 12-foot monster sprouting broccoli-shaped leaves and a relative of the cucumber, is being cut down for timber as Socotrans abandon their traditional lifestyles, moving out of caves and into houses in the main town of Hadibo or smaller settlements.
But you still have to go through the mainland in order to reach Socotra and eco-tourism is being held back by fears of al-Qaeda and the kidnapping of foreigners for ransom in the mainland.