Central Thailand
was historically an extensive area of freshwater swamp with
areas of raised wooded land. These days most of the area is
either farmland or urbanized, but there are still many areas
where water birds can be seen particularly as freshwater species
are able to use rice fields and fish ponds for nesting and
feeding. Much of the less-intensively farmed land contains
marshland species and the mudflats of the Gulf of Thailand
support internationally important numbers of wintering waders
including Asian Dowitcher, Nordmann's Greenshank and the critically
endangered Spoon-billed Sandpiper. Parks and orchards
within urban areas provide a home to many common species and
are a magnet to passage migrants in spring and autumn.
The birding sites are marked on the map below and listed by
name below the map.
Wetlands are the speciality of
this region although with patches of woodland and parks attracting
migrants, over the course of a year a very large number of
species can be seen. Migrant shorebirds are the real reason
to visit central Thailand and with enormous numbers of waders,
a great species diversity and a number of globally rare species
the Gulf of Thailand may just be the best shorebird watching
site in the world.
All of these location (with
perhaps the exception of Bueng Boraphet) make a good day or
half day's birding for those who are living or staying in
Bangkok, making a high number of species accessible to birders
from the unlikely location of this huge, sprawling capital
city. The region is extremely well-serviced by roads meaning
that everywhere is accessible although this also means that
traffic jams are a constant problem and there is rapid habitat
destruction as the city grows ever bigger.
Highlights: Spoon-billed Sandpiper, Asian Golden Weaver,
Nordmann's Greenshank, Watercock, Pheasant-tailed Jacana,
Asian Dowitcher, Greater Spotted Eagle, Malaysian Plover,
Painted Stork, Spot-billed Pelican, Greater Painted Snipe,
Yellow-breasted Bunting, Great Knot, Milky Stork, Stork-billed
Kingfisher, Pallas's Grasshopper Warbler, Pied Harrier and
a wide range of passage migrants.
Weather: It is hot throughout the year in this region.
There can be a "cool" spell at some point between
November and end of January but some years this sees temperatures
down to the mid twenties while in others 30C is more normal.
Midday temperatures of between 30-40C are normal with the
hottest time usually being mid March to end of May. The rainy
season is between mid May to October and while immediately
after rain it can be refreshingly cool it does not usually
take long for the temperature to rise again. The early rainy
season (May/June) usually does not see wet weather on a daily
basis but it gets wetter through the season until there is
often severe flooding in late August to end of October or
even beyond. Rains usually stop around end of October/beginning
November and after this although temperatures are still high
the humidity is far lower making things more comortable until
heat and humidty builds up again towards end of February/beginning
of March.
Bird
Watching Trips:
If you need help organizing a bird watching trip to Thailand,
take a look at the suggested itineraries for ideas on
creating a tailor-made trip and contact me for advice:
Thailand
bird tours.
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