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Hoq cave

Italy

Hoq cave

The Hoq Cave or Hawk Cave (Arabic: كهف حوق) is a limestone cave on the island of Socotra, Yemen. It is located in the Hala spot approximately 1.5 km from the north-eastern coast, facing the open sea to northeast. Clearly visible from the sea, but difficult to access, it is situated at an altitude of

350 m. The about-2-km-deep cave has a main passage with a mean width of 50 m and a mean height of 20 m. Sunlight reaches about 200 m from the entrance. The temperature is constant during the year and varies between 25 and 27 °C, with a humidity higher than 95%. All sorts of speleothems, where numerous endemic troglobionts are living, can be found along the way into the cave. A range of epigraphy from the 1st to the 6th century CE has been recorded in the back part of the cave, placing Socotra as a major hub in the overseas trading links in ancient times, where merchants from all coasts of the northern Indian Ocean were brought together.

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