Socotra Archipelago: Yemen's natural World Heritage site in the Indian Ocean
Background
The Socotra Archipelago lies in the northwest Indian Ocean near the Gulf of Aden and forms part of Yemen.
UNESCO inscribed it on the World Heritage List in 2008 under natural criterion (x), for biological diversity and threatened species.
The archipelago comprises four islands and two rocky islets and extends about 250 km.
The inscribed property covers 410,460 hectares, with a buffer zone of 1,740,958 hectares.
Socotra has 825 plant species, of which 307, or 37 per cent, are endemic.
Endemism is also very high among reptiles, 90 per cent of 34 species, and land snails, 95 per cent of 96 species.
Its recorded bird life includes 192 species, of which 44 breed on the islands.
UNESCO describes the archipelago as the "Galápagos of the Indian Ocean".
In plain words
Endemic — A species that occurs naturally only in one particular area and nowhere else.
Archipelago — A group or chain of islands lying close together in the sea.
Buffer zone — An area around a heritage site that is given extra protection to shield the site itself.