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Chiang Saen
(Updated 28/12/19)

Introduction
Brown-cheeked Rail

Brown-cheeked (Eastern Water) Rail
(Photo by Nick Upton)

Chiang Saen is a small town, in Chiang Rai province, next to the Mekong river close to the famous "Golden Triangle" border area with Myanmar and Laos. A mosaic of wetland habitats including rice fields, fish ponds, overgrown wet areas, pools, open water and the Mekong river make this area an excellent location for birders to look for a wide variety of resident and migratory bird species. The geographical location of Chiang Saen makes it a prime site for finding birds that are rare in Thailand and almost every year new species are added to the Thai list from sites around the town.

The nearby non-hunting area, a lake known as Nong Bong Kai, is one of the few sites in Thailand that receives annual congregations of wildfowl in the "winter" and a spectacular harrier roost is one of the great bird spectacles of the country. The open nature of the sites here make a telescope an essential piece of birding equipment but many of the areas are accessible by car (4-wheel drive makes life easier but it is not essential) so that birding can be done at a nice pace and makes it a very suitable place for disabled birders to visit.

Few birders spend a significant amount of time here but there is a lot of potential to find many species and, given the northerly location, there is a real possibility of finding a new addition to the Thai list. Given this and the relaxing atmosphere of the region Chiang Saen is a really good place to spend some time to break up the forest birding and at the same time continuing to find more exciting species.

Unfortunately, like many places in Thailand, there are problems with both bird persecution and encroachment in this area and widespread habitat destruction along the Mekong has rendered it an ecological disaster zone.

Birding Highlights
Red Avadavat

Red Avadavat
(Photo by Nick Upton)

Winter wildfowl is the main attraction for many birders to take the trip to Chiang Saen, where these birds often congregate in flocks of thousands, mainly on the lake. Ruddy Shelduck are sometimes found on both the lake and the Mekong river and Spot-billed Duck is often easily seen on the river from Chiang Saen town itself. Many Eurasian species of duck can be found here with Ferruginous Duck, Baer's Pochard, Baikal Teal and Falcated Duck being among the most interesting.

Wildfowl is not the only attraction though, with birds such as Plain Martin, Long-billed Plover, Small Pratincole and River Lapwing occurring here and over the years many birders have searched for Jerdon's Bushchat in long grass in this region with varying success.

One of the most exciting aspects of birding in the Chiang Saen region is the possibility of finding a "first" for Thailand; over the years Bar-headed Goose, Greylag Goose, Common Crane and, most recently, Grass Owl have been added to the national list from this location. With so many highlights this region probably deserves three or four days to exploit its full potential, a length of time which few birders allocate.

A checklist of the birds of this location can be found here - Chiang Saen Bird Checklist

Scarlet-backed FlowerpeckerBird 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.
Travel Information

Use the interactive map below to plan your route to Chiang Saen. The blue line shows the route from Chiang Rai (F), Chiang Rai Airport (A) or Thatorn (G) to Nong Bong Kai (B), Wat Pak Ma No (C), Nam Kam Nature Reserve (D) and Mekong River (E).

By Car/Motorcycle
The birding sites at Chiang Saen are spread around so it is best to go there using your own vehicle. Getting to Chiang Saen is a simple affair, just get to Chiang Rai and head north on route 1 and turn right when you see the signposts for Chiang Saen. Use the map above to pinpoint the exact location of the sites around Chiang Saen. If you have arrived in Chiang Rai by public transport then it is possible to hire a vehicle from town or at the airport.

By Bus
Getting to Chiang Saen by bus is a simple affair being right on the tourist trail. Buses leave Chiang Rai bus station quite regularly and the journey takes an hour or so. There is also transport to and from the nearby towns of Chiang Kong and Mae Sai where visas can be renewed with a brief trip over the border to Myanmar.

If you are using bus to get to Chiang Saen then, of course, you will have to get to Chiang Rai first. Getting to this provincial capital is easy too with all the nearby provincial capitals having direct bus services heading here. If coming from Bangkok, the Mor Chit bus station in the north of the city is the one required to get here; this journey will take about 12 hours!

By Taxi/Motorcycle Taxi
In my opinion it is too far from Chiang Rai city to Chiang Saen to think about taking a motorcycle taxi. This is a dangerous way to travel and a journey of this distance is likely to result in some sort of accident. There are taxis of a sort in Chiang rai and one would have to negotiate with them the fare to Chiang Saen. If you are considering using a taxi it would be better to get your accommodation in Chiang rai to organize it for you.

By Train
There is no railway in Chiang Rai. The nearest station is in Chiang Mai, 2-3 hours away.

By Boat
An alternative and rather interesting method of getting to Chiang Rai is by boat from Thaton, taking about 2.5 hours. Boats leave from Thaton (it's easy to see them from the bridge) once or twice a day and tickets can be purchased at the small pier. The boats are quite small and uncomfortable; sitting squashed up in them for almost 3 hours is not that pleasant and if you are not the most supple person around a trip by bus may be a better idea, however the scenery is nicer by boat. It is necessary to take a ride into Chiang Rai from where the boat stops, but there are songtaew drivers there ready to take you so this is easy to do.

By Plane
There are many flights to Chiang Rai airport from Bangkok and other provinces. AirAsia, Nok Air, Bangkok Airways, VietAir, Thai Lion and Thai Smile all fly to Chiang Rai. From the airport you are able to pick up a rental vehicle or possibly arrange other transport on to Chiang Saen.

Finding Birds

Over the years the Mekong and Chiang Saen lake have attracted a lot of attention from birders but these two bodies of water are just a part of a greater area of wetlands that continue to host a lot of interesting birds even though habitat degradation continues throughout the area. There are a number of good spots that still turn up a lot of species but there are lots of scraps of land worth checking out in the area that could easily turn up equally good birds and even rarities.

Chiang Saen Map Mekong River Nong Klab Nam Kam Nature Reserve Nong Bong Kai Yonon Wetlands

Mekong River: The "Mighty" Mekong is in a terrible state with Chinese control of water flow through their upstream dams creating artificially high water levels at critical times of the year, denying birds valuable feeding and breeding grounds when the water levels naturally would be low. Added to this many of the islands and sand bars that used to attract birds have been dreadfully degraded by development on the Laos side of the river and by reclaiming of land for farming on the Thai side. This means that gone are the days when Long-billed Plover could regularly be found here and resident species such as Grey-throated Martin, River Lapwing and Jerdon's Bushchat are only just hanging on.

Small Pratincole
Small Pratincole

 

Jerdon's Bushchat
Jerdon's Bushchat

Yellow-bellied Prinia
Yellow-bellied Prinia

 

Temminck's Stint
Temminck's Stint

(Photos by Nick Upton)

Having said that the geographical location of the river means that it still worth a look and if the water level is low enough to reveal some sand and gravel bars then a number of interesting species can be found. The only place where birders are likely to find anything of interest on the river close to town is at the "Rim Khong" restaurant - just park at the restaurant and walk to the back where there is a riverside embankment from where you can view the river; the staff are used to birdwatchers, so just smile and make your way towards the river. If there is any sand or gravel exposed Small Pratincole is likely to be seen and other waders that are frequently seen include Common Greenshank, Little Ringed Plover, Green Sandpiper and Temminck's Stint. East of Chiang Saen too, towards Chiang Kong, there are a few places to overlook the Mekong and these days represent a better chance to locate Small Pratincole, River Lapwing and Jerdon's Bushchat.

In the fringing vegetation Plain Prinia and Yellow-bellied Prinia are common resident birds which are joined by Dusky Warblers in the dry season. This undergrowth is also a good place to look for Red Avadavat which are most easily seen in the late afternoon when they drink and bathe in the river's margins. Althought they are much reduced in number this is still one of the only places you are likely to see Grey-throated Martin in Thailand (but for how much longer?) and Indian Spot-billed Ducks can sometimes be joined by Chinese Spot-billed Duck, Ruddy Shelduck or Common Shelduck. Those searching for Jerdon's Bushchat are going to have to travel further east along the river to find areas of tall reeds/grasses that contain this rapidly declining bird.

Nong Klab: When one reads old reports of a wide variety of birds at Nong Klab from the past a look at the site now is a good demonstration of how habitat in the area has been desecrated over the years and how this is continuing. This is now a largely sterile lake with a surrounding road and steep sides. Somehow it does sometimes turn up the odd rarity, usually Great Crested Grebe, and the rice fields close by may host a few interesting birds; I saw a Yellow-breasted Bunting close-by in early 2018. Generally, though, there is too much disturbance for many birds to stay long here.

Nam Kam Nature Reserve: With the destruction of almost every other scrap of reedy habitat this small, private, nature reserve is a valuable refuge for a number of species that are under extreme pressure in the area as well as consistently turning up Thai rarities. Along route 1016 there is a sign indicating the turning for this site and there is a small car parking area and toilet for visitors.

Chestnut-tailed Starling
Chestnut-tailed Starling

 

Pied Bushchat
Pied Bushchat

Common Kingfisher
Common Kingfisher

 

Firethroat
Firethroat

(Photos by Nick Upton)

Although this is a wetland, water is often in short supply and the pools frequently dry out completely. However, if there is some water Green Sandpiper is likely and Greater Painted Snipe can be found. Ruddy-breasted Crake and Slaty-breasted Rail are both resident but in the dry season this is one of few reliable sites to find Brown-cheeked (Eastern Water) Rail in Thailand.

Tall trees surrounding the site are where birds sit out in the open in the early morning and many of the trees here flower, attracting many species. Lineated Barbet, Black-collared Starling, Coppersmith Barbet, Racket-tailed Treepie, Green-billed Malkoha, Asian Koel and Chestnut-tailed Starling can all be expected and sometimes rarer starlings will join this latter species.

Many of the birds here are supreme skulkers and are only often located when study groups trap them in mist nets for ringing but it is possible to get lucky and see Baikal Bush Warbler out in the open or more often a stunning male Siberian Rubythroat while Dusky Warbler is common. Other skulking birds that will come into the open include the handsome Chestnut-capped Babbler as well as Yellow-eyed Babbler while sitting at one of the hides that overlooks a bird bath can turn up some extreme Thai rarities in the driest conditions including Chestnut-crowed Bush Warbler, Chinese Bush Warbler, Paddyfield Warbler, Baikal Bush Warbler and Thailand's first record of Firethroat was here with the same bird returning for a couple of successive years. Other extreme Thai rarities that have occurred here include Blyth's Reed Warbler, Large-billed Reed Warbler and (Siberian) Chiffchaff. I photographed the first Pale-footed Bush Warbler for this site in December 2019 in one of the hides.

In the late afternoon/evening sometimes large numbers of Baya Weavers come to roost in the reeds here and they can be joined in the dry season by Chestnut Buntings in good numbers and it is worth looking for Yellow-breasted Bunting, Black-faced Bunting and other species in these flocks, if they appear.

Nam Kam is one of those places where it is hard to predict exactly what will be seen and birding here is very hard due to many of the birds hiding in the dense vegetation but species as varied as Jerdon's Bushchat, Grey-crowned Warbler, Asian Barred Owlet, Rufous-winged Buzzard, Laced Woodpecker and Asian Openbill can be seen here for those who put in the effort.

Chiang Saen Lake (Nong Bong Kai): This large lake is one of the few places in Thailand that regularly attracts a variety of wildfowl. Most of these are Lesser Whistling Duck and Indian Spot-billed Duck, which are present all year round, but between December and March there are also usually good numbers of Garganey and Northern Pintail with Ferruginous Pochard being the most numerous diving duck. Smaller numbers of Northern Shoveler, Tufted Duck, Common Teal and Eurasian Wigeon are usually among the flocks. Most of these species are rather unexciting to many birders but it takes patience looking through these birds, which keep disappearing behind floating masses of water hyacinth, to find any rarer species of duck that may be present.

Indian Spot-billed Duck
Indian Spot-billed Duck

 

Burmese Shrike
Burmese Shrike

Grey-headed Lapwing
Grey-headed Lapwing

 

Black-winged Stilt
Black-winged Stilt

(Photos by Nick Upton)

The big prize among these commoner ducks is the critically endangered Baer's Pochard which is still more or less an annual winter visitor in ones and twos but species such as Gadwall, Mallard, Ruddy Shelduck, Common Shelduck, Mandarin Duck, Red-crested Pochard, Baikal Teal and Falcated Duck occasionally turn up too and even Long-tailed Duck has been seen here. It is also worth keeping an open mind as to what could be among the flocks as more species are likely to be added to the Thai list in future years.

These days the water level is usually fairly high and marshy margins are few and far between but there are areas where species such as Black-winged Stilt, the handsome Grey-headed Lapwing, Grey-headed Swamphen, Bronze-winged Jacana and a few Pheasant-tailed Jacanas too. If it has been a dry year and water levels are low it is sometimes possible to see White-browed Crake, Ruddy-breasted Crake and even Brown-cheeked (Eastern Water) Rail. Common and Pintail Snipe can also be found and even Swinhoe's Snipe occur here but identifying the latter is extremely difficult and there are few accepted records from Thailand.

The island in the lake is just about the only place in Thailand to spot Great Cormorant perched out on the trees along with Purple Heron, Grey Heron and, usually, Western Osprey. These birds are always worth checking in case something rarer is among them. The lake is also one of few sites in the country where Common Coot is abundant and Great Crested Grebe is an annual winter visitor in very small numbers.

In the surrounding farmland, gardens, grassy areas and copses a variety of other interesting species can be seen with Racket-tailed Treepie, Black-collared Starling and Sooty-heaed Bulbul as common resident species but it is usually possible to find Eurasian Wryneck, Siberian Rubythroat, Burmese Shrike, Thick-billed Warbler, Oriental Reed Warbler and Eastern Marsh Harrier in the "winter" months.

Yonok Wetlands: This area of wetlands also has patches of grassland and woodland making it an excellent place to find a large number of species although there seems to be constant degrading of the habitat and nobbling away at the edges so ultimately its days are probably numbered. At least one pair of Grass Owls persist in this area but the real highlight is Thailand's largest harrier roost, with between 200-300 birds (Eastern Marsh Harrier & Pied Harrier) at the peak. Mick Davies and Dowroong Danlammajak have done a great job in persuading the monks at Wat Pa Mak No to protect the harrier roost while battling the local authorities and poachers, also without the cooperation of local conservation bodies.

Lesser Coucal
Lesser Coucal

 

Barn Swallow tytleri
Barn Swallow (saturata)

Grey-headed Swamphen
Grey-headed Swamphen

 

Pied Harrier
Pied Harrier

(Photos by Nick Upton)

Standing next to the water in front of Wat Pa Mak No is a good place to wait as the light fades in order to see the harriers arrive. Small numbers come in at first and many birds will land before taking off again and they create a most amazing sight when hundreds of them are airborn all at the same time before descending into the boggy grass where they roost.

Of course there are lots of other birds to see here too, most noticeably large numbers of Grey-headed Swamphens and by scanning the bushes you are likely to spot resident Pied Buschat, Long-tailed Shrike and Greater Coucal as well as migratory Brown Shrike and Stejneger's Stonechat. There are small numbers of Striated Grassbird here too which are easily seen when they are singing from the tops of bushes while in the surrounding trees Lineated Barbet, Laced Woodpecker and Coppersmith Barbet are found.

Some rare and skulking migrant birds can be found here with some luck including Pallas's Grasshopper Warbler although it is more often heard than seen. Baikal Bush Warbler is frequent here too as is Black-browed Reed Warbler, Thick-billed Warbler and Eurasian Wryneck while rarer species such as Paddyfield Warbler have been recorded too. Flocks of Barn Swallow can always be seen while waiting for the harriers and if you take the time to look a few rufous-bellied birds of the subspecies tytleri and/or saturata can usually be spotted.

Facilities

At Chiang Saen Lake there is a resort to stay at, on the northern bank of the lake, close to headquarters: Viang Yonok Hotel. Chiang Saen itself has a growing number of hotels and Siam Triangle Hotel is a very comfortable place to stay with a good breakfast buffet from 6.30am. The Pak Ping Rim Kong Bed & Breakfast is very comfortable to stay in too and rather cheaper. There are a large number of hotels a little further up river at the Golden Triangle, but this area is very commercialized and best avoided in my opinion.

Pak Ping Rim Kong
(Photo by Nick Upton)

It is worth having dinner in Chiang Saen at the river front where there are food stalls serving great barbecued food: fish, chicken, pork, steak and som tam with sticky rice for stupidly low prices. It's a nice place to sit in the evening eating and drinking. There are a number of other decent eating places in Chiang Saen and a couple of minimarts which sell most things that are required. Chiang Saen also has a small fresh market, a post office, cash machines, banks and a small hospital although the closest large hospital is at Chiang Rai.

Much further down the river is the small town of Chiang Kong where there are a number of places to stay; Fortune River View Hotel is a very comfortable location. Chiang Khong is quite a drive but I mention it because the most likely stretches to find some of the Mekong's formerly common birds is along the Chiang Saen - Chiang Kong road so this small town could also be a good place to stay.

Chiang Rai is close enough to be a realistic option for accommodation and then drive to the lake and then along the Mekong: Chiang Rai Hotel Reservations, it takes about 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Chiang Saen Lake is not a National Park and there is no fee to go birdwatching in most of the area. However, at the non-nunting area headquarters they started charging visitors for entry only to that immediate area with foreigners being charged 200 baht per person; the only reason you will need to go to this area is if you want a boat trip.

Books I Recommend

Reed and Bush WarblersReed and Bush Warblers
If you want to get to grips with this extremely difficult and skulking group of birds then you need this book. This is one of the very best ornithological books with extended accounts on each species, superb plates and a wealth of photographs. One of my favourite books.

Birds of Thailand Birds of Thailand
This field guide has set new standards in identifying birds in the wild in Thailand. With the most up-to-date taxonomy of any publication this is the book you need if you are birdwatching in Thailand. Forget all of the older guides and buy this one.

Other Related Pages

Chiang Saen Bird Checklist

Birdwatching Tours

Other Northern Thailand Birding Locations

Enthusiastic Monks & Visiting Experts at Yonok Wetlands

Sign-making and binocular presentation at Yonok Wetlands

Leg-flagged Shorebirds in the Inner Gulf of Thailand

Volunteers required at Yonok Wetlands

Yonok Wetlands Project near Chiang Saen

Is Chiang Saen Lake Shrinking?

Air Pollution in Chiang Mai

Bird Persecution

Baer's Pochard

Video Clips

Harrier Roost
Trip Reports

Thailand Leaf Warbler Tour, 3rd-17th December 2016 - by Nick Upton

North & Central Thailand Tour, 3rd-26th December 2014 - by Nick Upton

Northern Thailand, 14-19th February 2007 - by Peter Ericsson

Doi Pha Hom Pok & Chiang Saen, 17-19th February 2005 - by Peter Ericsson

Mae Fang, Doi Ang Kang & Golden Triangle, 14-22nd March 2004 - by Peter Ericsson

Long-tailed Shrike Bird Watching Trips:
Chiang Saen is an excellent place to add to any Northern Thailand birding tour itienraries between the months of November to April and there are a high number of wetland skulkers and waterfowl that can be found which are unlikely to be seen at any other location.

Look at some itinerary ideas, Thailand bird tours, or contact me for information: nickupton@thaibirding.com.
Related Blog Entries
Photo Galleries

Select the thumbnail photos to see larger images.

Around Chiang Saen

Sunrise
Sunrise
Rice Fields
Rice Fields near Nong Bong Kai
mekong
Mekong at Rim Khong Restaurant
birding-at-the-mekong
Birding at the Mekong
sunset-at-yonok
Sunset at Yonok Wetlands
Selected eBird Lists
 

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