Nam Nao National Park

If each national park in Thailand had a bird as it emblem, for Nam Nao National Park it would surely be the White-crested Laughingthrush, last week whilst we were at Nam Nao from the 18th-21st January, they were ever present, when I have seen them before they are usually shy and quickly disappear off into the forest, but at Nam Nao they feed out in the open around the campsite and at times fed within just a few feet of us on our balcony, this must be the easiest place in the world to see this species
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Red-headed Trogon
by Fred Rowe

Used to campers a number of other species are also tame and easy to see, with daily flocks of Red-billed Blue Magpie, several Green Magpie and a male Red-headed Trogon also showing well daily. We also saw an excellent selection of woodpeckers, including a White-bellied and Grey-headed, both of which spent nearly an hour looking at their selfs in one of the toilet blocks mirrors. The lights by the entrance to the campsite, attracted a number of birds early in the morning, to feed on insects attracted by the light, the best of these was an intricate patterned female White-throated Rock Thrush, a Hainan Blue Flycatcher and a very obliging Verditer Flycatcher.

A walk along the entrance road produced at least two Grey-sided Thrush, which seem to have been part of a wide influx into Thailand over the past week. Other species noted, included several calling Bar-backed Partridge, several Northern Boobook, Barred Cuckoo Dove, Orange-breasted Trogon, Grey-capped Pygmy Woodpecker, Greater and Lesser Yellownape, numerous Black-winged and Indochinese Cuckooshrike, Rosy and Small Minivet, Lesser Necklaced Laughingthrush and Golden-crested Myna.   

Baer' s Pochard

Saturday 16th January was spent birding at Beung Bhoraphet, with six hours on a boat around the lake and several hours at the Waterbird Park. The highlight of the visit was seeing three Baer' s Phochard, a species which is rapidly heading towards extinction due hunting and habitat destruction and may well become extinct in the wild within a few years.

Garganey and Pnitail
by Fred Rowe

Other wildfowl/waterbirds recorded on the lake included 850 Garganey, 800 Cotton Pygmy Geese, 420 Pintail, 290 Coot, 15 Ferruginous Duck, 5 Tufted Duck and 3 Pochard. As usual there were lots of egrets, herons and Open-billed Stork as well as 30 Glossy Ibis, 6 Painted Stork and one Black-headed Ibis. Raptors included several Black-eared Kite and Eastern Marsh Harrier. A single Chestnut-winged Cuckoo was unexpected for what is normally a wet season visit and passage migrant and we also enjoyed good views of at least 25 Chestnut Munia, as well as several singing Striated Grassbird and Streaked, Golden and Baya Weavers. On the way back towards dusk, huge numbers of Swallows and Sand Martin gathered over the lake, with two Pied Kingfisher and two Lesser Coucal also seen.

Coot by Fred Rowe

In roadside trees at the waterbird park two Freckled-breasted Woodpecker were watched down to a few feet, as were a pair of Plain-backed Sparrow and a small flock of White-shouldered Starling. Elsewhere around the park a Wryneck was seen briefly, with a single Pink-necked Green Pigeon and several Yellow-vented Bulbul showing much better.

Purple Swamphen
by Fred Rowe

Whilst out on the boat, we were surprised to see a Greater Flamingo, past examples have automatically been assumed to have been escapes from bird parks, but with a range which includes much of the Indian sub-continent, a vagrant could occur, but........

Black Panther

January 11th-16th was spent birding at Keang Karchan National Park and surrounds, we spent two three full days in the park, a day at Lung Sin Hide outside the park as well as time birding around the grounds of Baan Makka Resort our base for the duration of stay. 

Black-headed Bulbul
by Fred Rowe

Several visits were made to forest 9-10 kilometer along the entrance road, where best birds were 2 Great-slaty Woodpecker, 2 Heart-spotted Woodpecker and 2 Golden-crested Myna. Fruiting trees here attracted huge numbers of bulbuls, especially Black-headed and other birds in the area included several Thick-billed Green Pigeon, Dollarbird, Common and Greater Flameback, Greater Yellownape and a single Emerald Ground Dove which showed exceptionally well.   

Oriental Pied Hornbill
by Fred Rowe

Extended periods were spent birding around the Bang Krang Campsite, were a decent selection of common species were recorded, including excellent views of a Jerdon's Baza, but the star birds here for the group were Blue-eared and Green-eared Barbets which showed exceptionally well whilst excavating nesting holes and a party of four Sultan Tit which fed on the ground in the campsite just a few feet in front of us, allowing Fred to take some excellent photos. Frustratingly a calling Banded Broadbill and several very vocal Drongo Cuckoo failed to show. Commoner species noted at the campsite included Violet Cuckoo and Banded Bay Cuckoo, numerous Oriental Pied Hornbill including a very tame hand reared bird, 2 Orange-breasted Trogon, Blue-bearded Bee-eater, Greater Yellownape, Stripe-breasted Woodpecker, Vernal Hanging Parrot, Common Woodshrike, Rosy Minivet, Asian Paradise Flycatcher, Buff-vented and Ochraceous Bulbul, Eastern Crowned Warbler, Great Iora, Rufous-fronted Babbler, Blue-winged Leafbird, Ruby-cheeked and Crimson Sunbird.    

A visit to Paneom Tung was less successful with relatively few birds seen, due to partly to only being able to bird the flat sections of the road and around the campsite, most noteworthy sightings here included two Grey-rumped Treeswift, Bamboo Woodpecker, a Blue-throated Barbet making a nest hole, Wreathed Hornbill, Ashy and Mountain Bulbul, Long-tailed Broadbill and a selection of common species.

Racket-tailed Treepie
by Fred Rowe

We spent a day in Lung Sin Hide outside the park, though activity here was much less than on previous visits, we still managed some good birds and as always some excellent views of commoner ones. Highlights included two Kalij Pheaseant, 3 Bar-backed Partridge, Asian Green Magpie, Racket-tailed Treepie, three Large Scimiter Babbler, 2 White-browed Scimiter Babbler and the usual Lesser and Greater Necklaced Laughingthrush.

Greater Necklaced Laughingthrush
by Fred Rowe

Both Cinnamon and Yellow Bittern  were seen daily on the lake at Baan Makka, along with several Bronze-winged Jacana.  

Common Shelduck

Common Shelduck

8th-11th January was spent birding along the coast between Pak Thale and Leam Pak Bia with Fred and Marian Rowe, as usual plenty of waders in the area, but the rarest birds we saw were two Common Shelduck and Pak Thale, a Thai rarity but a very common species for us back home.

Long-toed Stint by Fred Rowe

High water levels made finding Spoon-billed Sandpiper tricky and eventually after much effort we found two, including a leg flagged bird. We did see see 27 Red-necked Phalarope and one a small pool near the sea we recorded 18 species of waders including large numbers of Terek Sandpiper, Leser Sandplover and a few Great Knot. During a morning's birding at saltpans near Leam Pak Bia we recorded at least 16 very distant Nordmann's Greenshank, 24 Pied Avocet and a Chinese Egret, the first time I have seen this species away from the nearby sandspit.

Mixed Waders Pak Thale

We took the obligatory boat trip out on to the sandpit at Leam Pak Bia with Mr Deang, one of the first birds we saw just a few meters from his house was a Chinese Egret, followed a short while later by a second and a third on the sand spit. It did not take long once at the sand spit to find several Malaysian Plover and two White-faced Plover. Birds in the tern/gull roost here included a single Pallas's Gull, 2 Hueglin's Gull, 70 Greater Crested Tern and good numbers of Little and White-winged Black Tern. On the boat trip back, we were surprised to see a Slaty-breasted Rail swimming near the boat.

White-faced Plover

The research project at Leam Pak Bia was fairly quiet, but we did see at least 4 Ruff and several Ruddy-breasted Crake and Slaty-breasted Rail and 330 White-shouldered Starling came in to roost.

Eastern Marsh Harrier

A visit to an area of rice fields inland from Pak Thale added a number of additional species to list, with the best being a stunning male Pied Harrier which gave excellent views for 15 minutes as it hunted over fields just in front of us. Also in the same area were up to 4 Eastern Marsh Harrier, 1-2 Greater Spotted Eagle, Watercock, Yellow Bittern and  very many Zitting Cisticola.

  

Black-headed and Slender-billed Gull

With several hours to spare before picking friends up from the airport at Bangkok, I decided to visit Bangpoo on the Northern edge of the gulf of Thailand, from the pier here there are always large numbers of Brown-headed Gull, among which there are usually some scarcer gulls  and over the years many very rare ones. It did not take long to find at least 3 Black-headed Gull and 2 Slender-billed Gull among around a thousand Brown-headed Gull. 

Brown-headed Gulls

Black-tailed Godwit

From the nearby hide overlooking a lagoon, there were at least 2250 Black-tailed Godwit, 50 Pacific Golden Plover and small numbers of Spotted and Common Redshank, Greenshank and Wood Sandpiper, also present were five Painted Stork.    

Bryde's Whale Bangpoo

Wreathed Hornbills

Wreathed Hornbills by Fred Rowe

We spent the 28th December 2015-2nd January at Chiang Dao, where I made several visits to Wat Tham Pha Plong and to the rice fields near Chiang Dao Town. The best birds over the temple were five Wreathed Hornbill  which flew high over and were one of only a handful of records from Northern Thailand In recent decades, this is the third time I have recorded this species here in the last five years, the other two occasions was once in late December and another in early January, whether these birds are rare residents, winter visitors or migrants I do not know.  

White-tailed Robin by Fred Rowe

There were plenty of birds in the forest around the temple, with one damp gully being especially productive, with species seen here over a number of visits including a Dark-sided Thrush, male White-tailed Robin, Asian Stubtail, male Siberian Blue Robin, Northern White-crowned Forktail and a pair of Streaked Wren Babbler. 

Streaked Wren Babbler by Fred Rowe

Other species noted at the temple included a Bamboo Woodpecker, pair of Grey-capped Pygmy Woodpecker, 2 Speckled Piculet, several Great Iora, Orange-breasted Trogon, 2 Black-throated Laughingthrush and at least three different Purple-naped Sunbird. 

Birds seen during a late afternoon visits to the rice paddies included a Rufous-winged Buzzard, 4 Eastern Little Ringed Plover, Green Sandpiper, 4 Citrine Wagtail and two Oriental Skylark. A feeding flock of 150 Black-collared Starling, was the biggest flock of this species I have ever seen.