Dragon's Blood trees, Diksum Plateau, Socotra, Yemen
[socotra, yemen, dragon's blood tree, diksum plateau]
Taken 06:57, 09/02/2009
Panoramic photo by
Stefan Geens
Google EarthAuthor's pick
Blockbuster
The Dragon's Blood tree is one of Socotra's iconic natural features. These trees grows in droves high up on Diskum plateau in the center of the island, each one a mathematical object, with bifurcating branches obeying obscure yet graceful laws of mathematics.
I got to this spot by getting off the main road, driving along a very rocky track for for a while, then getting out of the car and heading straight into the bush. The underbrush conceals all manner of interesting life — lizards, strange-looking spiders — and the going was slow, but the resulting immersion in Socotra's exotic nature was well worth the effort.
