Samha, Abd Al-Kuri, and Darsa Islands

The other 3 main islands of Socotra archipelago are situated to the west of the island of Socotra. The small island of Samha (10x5 km), home of about 100 people, is reached in 4 hours by boat from Qualansiya. Abd Al-Kuri is larger (25x5 km) with about 300 inhabitants and reachable in approximately 12 hours by boat. Both islands are barren with very little vegetation and drinking water is of poor quality. No schools or health facilities exist. The people of these islands depend on fishing and occasionally come to Socotra for medical help or trade, but in general they are extremely isolated. The island of Darsa is not inhabited. 3D Views of Socotra

3D Views of Socotra

Prepared by Rebecca Klaus on behalf of UNDP-GEF, 1999 ©

Landscape and Climate

Socotra is characterized by the Haghier Mountains, reaching 1525 m a.s.l., and located in the north-western part of the island. The eastern and central parts of the island receive some rain during fall and winter, while the western part of the island is arid. In spring, from March to May, temperatures usually rise above 40°C. The climate is characterized by the seasonal Monsoon winds, blowing from the North-East during the period October-May and from South-West during the period June-September. From June to September the island is accessible only by plane, because of exceedingly strong monsoon winds, and access by sea is virtually impossible due to high seas and strong winds all around the island. During this time, fishing is impossible and many people move from the northern coast to the mountains to escape the winds, and to harvest their date palms.


                           Map prepared by Rebecca Klaus on behalf of UNDP-GEF, 1999 ©

Socotra Island's beautiful and bizarre landscape

Socotra
( Piotr Kot )
Isolated from continental land masses for 18 million years, Yemen's Socotra Island showcases an alien-like landscape with unusual plants and animals, such as the blood dragon tree, pictured, and desert rose. Its high degree of biodiversity has earned it the name the "Galápagos of the Indian Ocean."

Where Is Socotra

Photos of Socotra

Halah Cave	Halah Cave	Halah Cave	Halah Cave
Halah Cave	Halah Cave	Dixam	Qlinsia
Nawjad

Socotra Transport

Public transport on Socotra is limited to infrequent minibuses to Qalansiya and to the villages on northeastern coast, car hire usually means hiring a 4WD car with driver.
Ships connect the only Socotra port - 5 km east of Hadibu with Yemeni coastal city of Mukalla (Al-Mukalla). According to information from the ports of Mukalla and Hadibu the journey takes 2–3 days and the service is used mostly for cargo.
Yemenia and Felix Airways fly from Socotra Airport to Sana'a and Aden via Mukalla (RIY - Riyan Airport). The Sana'a service is everyday, while Aden flights are available on Mondays (as of December 2009).

Socotra People and economy

The inhabitants are of Arab, Somali, and South Asian origins. They follow the Islamic faith and speak Soqotri, a Semitic language. Their primary occupations have been fishing, animal husbandry, and the cultivation of dates. Almost all inhabitants of Socotra, numbering nearly 50,000,^[9] live on the homonymous main island of the archipelago. The principal city, Hadiboh (with a population 8,545 at the census of 2004), the second largest town, Qulansiyah (3,862), and Qād̨ub (929)^{[citation needed]} are all located on the north coast of the island of Socotra. Only a few hundred people live on the islands of 'Abd-al-Kūrī and Samha; the island of Darsa and the islets of the archipelago are uninhabited.^{[citation needed]}
The archipelago forms two districts of the Hadhramaut Governorate:

• the district of Hadībū (حديبو), with a population of 32,285 and a district seat at H̨adībū, consists of the eastern two thirds of the main island of Socotra;
• the district of Qulansiyah wa 'Abd-al-Kūrī (قلنسيه وعبد الكوري), with a population of 10,557 and a district seat at Qulansiyah, consists of the minor islands (the island of 'Abd-al-Kūrī chief among them) and the western third of the main island.

Monsoons long made the archipelago inaccessible from June to September each year. However, in July, 1999, a new airport opened Socotra to the outside world year round, with both Yemen Airways and Felix Airways providing flights once a week to Aden and everyday to Sana'a. All flights stop at Riyan-Mukalla Airport (ICAO code "RIY"). Socotra Island Airport ("OYSQ") is located about 12 km west of the main city, H̨adībū, and close to the third largest town in the archipelago, Qād̨ub.^[14] Diesel generators make electricity widely available in Socotra, but even in Hadiboh there is no electricity from 5:00 A.M. until 9:00 A.M. daily.^{[citation needed]} An excellent paved road runs along the north shore from Quelensiyah to Hadiboh and then to DiHamri area; and another paved road, from the northern coast to the southern through the Dixsam Plateau.^{[citation needed]} Public transport is limited in Socotra; taxis are available only as a kind of rent-a-car service of four-wheel-drive vehicles with drivers.^{[citation needed]}
The former capital is located to the east of Hadiboh. A small Yemeni Army barracks lies at the western end of Hadiboh, and the President of Yemen, Ali Abdullah Saleh, has a residence there.^{[citation needed]}
The Semitic language Soqotri, spoken originally only in Socotra, is related to such other Modern South Arabian languages on the Arabian mainland as Mehri, Harsusi, Bathari, Shehri, and Hobyot. Soqotri is also spoken by minority populations in the United Arab Emirates and other Gulf states.
Some residents raise cattle and goats. The chief export products of the island are dates, ghee, tobacco, and fish.
At the end of the 1990s, a United Nations Development Program was launched with the aim of providing a close survey of the island of Socotra.^{[citation needed]}
The majority of male residents on Socotra are reported to be in the J* subclade of Y-DNA haplogroup J. Several of the female lineages on the island, notably those in mtDNA haplogroup N, are found nowhere else on earth.