Introduction
Although it is necessary to be out very early for the best
birding in Thailand, Srasri and I couldn't drag ourselves
out of bed until about 7.30 am after a long week dealing with
rowdy students.
Not wanting to stay in I suggested a trip to Bang Pra Non-hunting
area, easily reached in a little over an hour from our home
in Bang Na. Srasri needed a little convincing, but was persuaded
with the promise of a seafood lunch at nearby Bang Saen beach.
Vehicle
We made this trip in our own car, a Honda Civic saloon. The
highway from Bangkok to Pattaya is a very good road and Bang
Pra is just a few kilometres from this and any vehicle is
suitable and can be parked at various places around the reservoir.
Notes on Finding Birds
We arrived far too late for any serious birding as Bang Pra
is one of the hottest and most humid locations I know, meaning
that if one wants to find a lot of species, including some
of the harder to find ones, arriving early is essential. However,
we were just enjoying a few hours of casual birding and Bang
Pra is a good site for doing this as spotting birds in open
country is easy.
Notes
On arrival, at about 9am, we parked at the small lake at the
South Eastern end of the reservoir, where the usual Little
Cormorants sat perched in a tree with a few Eastern Cattle
Egrets for company and two Brown-backed Needletails swooped
past. However, we noticed that the water level of the main
reservoir was very low, and headed towards the water's edge
to see what could be found there. On our way through the dry
grassland a number of colourful birds revealed themselves;
Green Bee-eaters hunting from their perches; an Indian Roller
on a telegraph pole and one of my favourite species - a Eurasian
Hoopoe feeding on the ground. All common species but spectacular
when one gets good views like this.
Bird
Watching Trips:
If you only have a short time for birding from Bangkok,
Bang Pra is an excellent site to visit as part of a
day trip and is the best location for birding if staying
at nearby Pattaya. Combine this site with a visit to
Muang Boran Fishponds, Lat Krabang Rice Fields and/or
Bang Poo for a good day's birding. At all times of the
year a good selection of interesting species can be
seen.
Contact me to arrange a birding trip and/or to discuss
the best bird watching options for you: nickupton@thaibirding.com
As we got closer to the water, Srasri pointed to some large
birds soaring overhead; a pair of Spot-billed Pelicans. These
birds are always a fantastic sight,
even when one knows that they originate from the nearby
Khao Khieo open zoo. Another bird originating from the zoo
was a single Painted Stork amongst the numerous Little, Great
and Intermediate Egrets. It is worth remembering that although
the storks here originate from the zoo, they do breed outside
of the zoo's bounds.
In the shallows of the main lake a number of waders were feeding.
I was hoping to find something unusual (northern Lapwing has
been seen here in the past), but only small numbers of common
species were present; Kentish Plover and Little Ringed Plovers
Common Greenshank, Marsh Sandpiper, Wood Sandpiper and Common
Sandpiper, Temminck's Stint and a lone Long-toed Stint amongst
the ever present Red-wattled Lapwings and Black-winged Stilts.
Some emergent vegetation in some wet areas contained a calling
Yellow-bellied Prinia, which is a really nice little bird,
and an Oriental Reed Warbler.
The late morning sun was taking its toll on us so we decided
to walk back to the car. Searching the grassy areas as we
went, numerous Indochinese Bushlarks revealed themselves,
their wide rufous wings were obvious as they flew away. Also
of interest were a small party of Chestnut Capped Babblers
in reeds, a species less often seen than one might expect,
but this is always a good place to look for them. Other small
birds in this grassy habitat included Zitting Cisticolas,
which never really gave us a good view as they were busy "zitting"
in flight, Stejneger's Stonechat, Paddyfield Pipit, Richard's
Pipit and Plain Prinia.
Although I had more or less decided that we would go back
to the car and leave, being a birder I could not walk past
anything that looked interesting and we began to boil as I
took time to look at a Lesser Coucal, a bird that I often
see here, and some Red-rumped Swallows hunting with large
numbers of Barn Swallows and Asian Palm Swifts.
I was also keen to scan through the mynas that were feeding
on the ground and flying past at all times to see if I could
spot Vinous-breasted Starling, a species that should occur
here (I have seen it on subsequent trips) but only came up
with Common Myna, White-vented Myna and a couple of Black-collared
Starlings.
Back at the car the air-conditioning was a life-saver, but
a splendid Greater Racket-tailed Drongo complete with tail
plumes excited Srasri enough to get her out of the car again.
Having been revitalised by the car's cool air I was ready
to take a look around some of the wooded areas, however, Srasri
reminded me of my seafood obligations, so we left for nearby
Bang Saen.
There was time, though, for one more bird; a fish-catching
Osprey at the dam, observed at close quarters after a screeching
halt. A great spectacle to prepare us for barbecued prawns
and crab!
If you are interested in arranging a bird
watching tour you can see some suggested itineraries here
- Birdwatching
Trips - and you can contact me at the above email address
to discuss the best options.
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