Greater Tunb Island

Greater Tunb is an Iranian island in the Persian Gulf. Under Iran's administrative divisions, it belongs to Abu Musa County in Hormozgan Province. The island covers about 11 square kilometres and lies south of Qeshm Island. It is bounded to the south by Abu Musa Island, to the east by Oman and to the west by Lesser Tunb. The soil is sandy and dry. The island has some hills, the highest of which, at 53 metres, lies in the north.

Desert plants grow in this area and are used to graze the local livestock. Greater Tunb is not rich in vegetation and is in fact very poor. However, it has many salt-tolerant plants, such as tamar, tamarisk (gaz), lour (the Indian fig, or prickly pear), moghir, kert and others, which make up the island's plant cover. If you travel here, in the waters around the island you can see many edible fish, including kingfish (shir), khāru, shurideh and sorkhu (snapper), as well as inedible species such as loqmeh mahi, eels and sawfish. You may also spot sea turtles, sharks, crabs, dolphins and molluscs. Birds found here include gulls, swallows, rock doves, date bulbuls and others. The reptiles of the area are various venomous snakes and scorpions.

The island's climate is hot and its land dry, with fairly high humidity; the average maximum humidity is 80–82% in summer. Air temperatures range from 24 to 44 °C in summer and from 10 to 24 °C in winter. Rainfall is low, though it increases in winter.

Greater Tunb is small enough to explore on foot. You can reach it by air or by sea, although this does not mean there is a large airport or a direct flight. To get to the island, you need to take one of the small planes that operate between Bandar Abbas, Qeshm and the surrounding islands. You can also reach the island by boat or small tourist ship from the Persian Gulf coast or from Qeshm Island. Greater Tunb is about 30 kilometres from Qeshm Island.