A cucumber tree! Yet another strange plant found only on Socotra.

This was the only specimen I found in this early stage of flowering, as well as a position to look at it. These trees are after all tall when they bloom, and most grow in a location where there are no boulders or cliffs to climb that are close enough to get an intimate look. The cliffs on the way to Shuab beach of west Socotra provided the perfect place.

Less famous than the desert rose or bottle tree, but equally amazing with its oversized trunk compared to the tiny branches.

The leaves can vary wildly on a tree. One branch had these extremely frizzy leaves resembling parsley shown above, while the rest of the tree had broad leaves.