Introduction
Pieter Verheij and Roger Marchant accompanied
me in January 2012 on a birding trip and at the time we discussed
them returning for a bird photography tour. Consequent emails
resulted in us planning a photography tour for March 2013
with the emphasis on spending the time needed to obtain the
highest quality photographs possible and not worrying about
chasing rare and difficult to see species or amassing a large
and impressive list. With a large photographic community in
Thailand it was easy to plan a promising and enjoyable itinerary
and at the same time see some really spectacular species.
Transport
We had the luxury of a Toyota Commuter minivan between just
the three of us. This gave us lots of space for all the bird
watching and camera equipment and allowed us to use the vehicle
as a hide. I arranged for the vehicle to be without the usual
curtains around the windows to give us better visibility which
proved to be great for taking pictures from the van. This
vehicle was reasonably priced, economic on fuel and being
a diesel with manual transmission, it flew up even the steepest
of hills.
Accommodation
At Thatorn we stayed at Thatorn
Garden Home Nature Resort with pleasant accommodation
and excellent food. It takes about 1 hour to get to the birding
spots on Doi Lang.
At Chiang Mai we spent a night at the Amora
Tapae which is very comfortable and we got upgraded
to the Presidential suite.
The Inthanon Highland Resort was where we spent one night
at Doi Inthanon and they provided us with good food.
At Mae Wong we stayed at Makbun Resort which was comfortable
and close to the park gate - no food available here though.
At Nakorn Sawan we stayed at Asia Nakorn Sawan Hotel - comfortable,
cheap and central location.
At Khao Yai we stayed at Duangporn Resort close to the park
gate - good food here.
In Bangkok we stayed in Nanatai
Suite - this was a last minute change of hotel
as we changed our plans.
In Petchaburi we stayed at the Sun
Hotel.
At Kaeng Krachan we stayed at Baan
Maka Nature Lodge, a short drive from the park
gate - excellent food and helpful staff.
Notes on Finding Birds
We focused on birds that we knew we could get close enough
to to photograph, so we concentrated on visiting the known
stakeouts for birds. However, we did also balance things by
spending some time walking roads, looking for birds, but only
in places where I knew there was a good chance of some of
them coming in close. Consequently we did not spend much time
looking for particular species and never really struggled
to find birds to photograph.
Many of the stakeouts were not quite as productive as hoped
for and this was probably due to unseasonal rain, but even
so, there were plenty of birds to photograph. The only place
where activity was very low indeed was Khao Yai, a site which
seems to very frequently disappoint these days.
Field Guides
1. A Field
Guide to the Birds of South East Asia by Craig Robson
2. Birds
of Thailand - Thai language field guide by various contributors
3. A Guide
to the Large Mammals of Thailand by John Parr.
Highlights
Doi Lang: Spot-breasted Parrotbill, Giant
Nuthatch, Hume's Pheasant, Mountain Bamboo Partridge, Ultramarine
Flycatcher, Spot-breasted Laughingtrush, Long-tailed Broadbill,
Rufous-gorgetted Flycatcher, Slaty-blue Flycatcher, Slaty-backed
Flycatcher, Crested Finchbill, Scarlet-faced Liocichla, Black-throated
Parrotbill
Doi Ang Kang: White-tailed Robin, Large Hawk
Cuckoo, Silver-eared Mesia
Doi Inthanon: Green-tailed Sunbird, Yellow-bellied
Flowerpecker, Grey-sided Thrush, Pygmy Wren Babbler, Snowy-browed
Flycatcher, White-browed Shortwing, Bar-throated Minla
Mae Wong: Grey Peacock Pheasant, Rufous-throated
Partridge, Rufous-browed Flycatcher, Streaked Wren Babbler,
Silver-eared Mesia, Northern White-crowned Forktail, Chinese
Leaf Warbler, Small Niltava, Long-tailed Sibia, Hodgson's
Hawk Cuckoo, Red-billed Blue Magpie, Kalij Pheasant
Bueng Boraphet: Yellow Bittern, Garganey,
Cotton Pygmy Goose
Khao Yai: Great Hornbill, Thick-billed Green
Pigeon, Yellow-rumped Flycatcher, Barred Cuckoo Dove
Nakorn Sri Kuan Kan Park: Pink-necked Green
Pigeon, Black Baza
Pak Thale: Spoon-billed Sandpiper, Oriental
Pratincole
Laem Pak Bia: Nordmann's Greenshank, Pied
Avocet
Tung Bang Jak: Asian Golden Weaver, Streaked
Weaver, Baya Weaver, Yellow-bellied Prinia, Pied Harrier,
Eastern Marsh Harrier
Kaeng Krachan: Black-and-red Broadbill, Banded
Broadbill, Black-and-yellow Broadbill, Great Hornbill, Tickell's
Brown Hornbill, White-fronted Scops Owl, Sultan Tit, Yellow-rumped
Flycatcher
Lung Sin Hide: Scaly-breasted Partridge,
Bar-backed Partridge, Slaty-legged Crake, Large Scimitar-babbler
Birding Diary
Fang By Pass 7th March
Our journey from Chiang Mai airport to where we were staying
at Thatorn saw us passing the town of Fang at around 4.30pm.
This gave us a little time to take a look for some common
species in the rice fields around the Fang By Pass. I wanted
Pieter and Roger to take some practice photos, not so much
for them as they are very good photographers, but more for
me to see what sort of results they obtained with birds of
different sizes from different distances and in different
lights. I would use the knowledge learnt from this little
session to know which birds in which conditions would produce
the best photographs through the trip.
We very quickly found out that with just three of us in the
van we could use it very effectively as a mobile hide, with
the windows and the sliding door open. Driving along with
the van barely moving we managed to creep up on Brown Shrike,
Long-tailed Shrike, Cattle Egret and a pair of Pied Bushchats
but due to the failing light conditions and lack of time we
did not get any top quality photos of any of these birds;
the Cattle Egret pictures were okay and I got an idea of the
conditions and distances required for getting the best photos.
With this we went and checked into our accommodation and had
a beer together before ordering dinner.
Doi Lang 8th March
Originally, when planning this trip, we had not intended to
go to northern Thailand at all as we had visited this region
in January 2012 together and done very well in terms of the
number of good quality photos taken. However, with access
to Doi Lang being possible from Fang and the photographic
stakeouts that were established in December 2012 it seemed
crazy to do a photo tour of Thailand and not visit this site,
so with some hasty rearranging of the tour we headed up the
mountain after breakfast.
 |
White-bellied Redstart
(male)
(Photo by Nick
Upton) |
Heading up the mountain through the pine forest one of the
first birds we came across was a magnificent male Hume's Pheasant,
a bird that we missed the previous year. Unfortunately we
did not get time even for a quick photo as by the time I had
manoeuvred the vehicle into position it had moved off into
the undergrowth. However, a little further up the hill and
we had a male Ultramarine Flycatcher sitting close to the
vehicle and both Roger and Pieter got shots of it and although
it was a little backlit, the result were quite pleasing.
Arriving at the photo stakeout zone we had a quick look along
the road first, hoping to call out a Spot-breasted Parrotbill
- no luck. In fact it was pretty quiet all round with bad
weather looming on the hilltops; it was obvious that a storm
was brewing and would not be too long in breaking. This was
not the start we were hoping for. However, putting a few mealworms
down in the appropriate place lured out a male White-bellied
Redstart very quickly; he was only too happy to pose for photos
in exchange for breakfast. This bird had been performing in
the same place for months, so we were expecting him but it
was still great to see this usually highly skulking species
out in the open and obtain some excellent photos.
Another photo den along the road provided a female Blue-fronted
Redstart which claimed our mealworms before disappearing but
not before beautiful photos of it were obtained.
Out on the road I was doing my best to lure some birds in
close using call playback but although Chestnut-vented Nuthatch
reacted it never put itself in a place for a photo. However,
I did hear a Giant Nuthatch which came in quickly to call
playback but frustratingly stayed high up in the trees and
in backlit situations. However, Roger did obtain a most unusual
shot of it in flight, but sadly not of the quality that his
high standards required. I glimpsed a Green Cochoa but despite
it responding to call playback it did decided that it did
not want its photo taken.
Oh dear! And then the rain began. One of those storms that
rains so hard that you need a hat in order to prevent your
head from bleeding. This was supposed to be the time to sit
and wait for many good birds at another stakeout but instead
we had to take shelter in the van. Anyway, we came up with
a plan - to drive to the other side of the mountain which
can often be dry when the other side is wet. This seemed overly
optimistic as we drove through thick fog and rain but when
we arrived at the border police checkpoint the weather had
improved with no rain and broken cloud; this gave us the chance
to try our luck and the long established feeding station here.
At first we got no results at all. In the past there was just
one feeding station but now there are several and the birds
seem to change their preference every time I visit. However,
by baiting a few spots with mealworms we encouraged Dark-backed
Sibia, Silver-eared Laughingthrush and the fantastic Scarlet-faced
Liocichla to pose - a wonderful result in dreadful weather
conditions.
Roger and Pieter had made it clear to me that they were far
more interested in getting very close views of a few birds
than chasing around after all the specialities and getting
glimpses of everything, so we just hung around this area where
the weather was clear and over the course of the next hour
we photographed Slaty-backed Flycatcher, Little Pied Flycatcher,
Buff-barred Leaf Warbler and attempted to get shots of a fast-moving
flock of beautiful Black-throated Parrotbills that came very
close to us but frustratingly left us with really out of focus
photos.
With the weather further improving we decided to drive back
towards the most anticipated stake out, stopping along the
road to get some shots of Crested Finchbills that were feeding
on some roadside trees.
Back at the stakeout a group of Thai photographers were sitting
in their blinds having their lunch. From previous visits I
knew that a blind was not required here as the birds were
tame, so after a quick word with the photographers we put
some meal worms down and waited.
 |
Spot-breasted Laughingthrush
(Photo by Nick
Upton) |
Well, we did not have to wait very long for a pair of Silver-eared
Laughingthrushes to come in and gobble up all the food. Over
the course of the next hour we fed these Laughingthrushes
and also got photos of some other great birds; Rufous-gorgetted
Flycatcher, Large Niltava, male and female Slaty-blue Flycatchers
and, eventually, a pair of Spot-breasted Laughingthrushes.
These birds had been coming to this stakeout for a few months
and are basically invisible under normal circumstances; most
birders living in Thailand had been coming to this spot to
get their first views of this skulking bird, including myself,
and it was utterly amazing when they came closer and closer
until they were virtually at our feet. This actually made
it very difficult to get a nice photo of the birds as we were
looking straight down at them!
After a few minutes of this they bounced off back into the
undergrowth but incredibly they reappeared about 15 minutes
later and did the same trick again; what an amazing experience
with this bird that I had struggled to get even a glimpse
of in the past.
With this performance over it was time for a long-overdue
lunch and then the return of the cloud and rain. Both Roger
and Pieter had enjoyed some great photo opportunities and
decided that it was pointless to remain on the mountain in
deteriorating conditions so we moved off the mountain and
went to see if we could find better conditions in the rice
fields.
Fang Bay Pass 8th March
When we got to the rice fields the rain was holding off, but
only just. We cruised up and down the same stretch of road
as yesterday with a little more luck, getting some nice shots
of Scaly-breasted Munia, reasonable pictures of Pied Bushchat
and Brown Shrike as well as Plain-backed Sparrow. With the
rain clouds following us we drove a little further towards
Thatorn and visited some more rice fields but there was only
time for Roger to stalk down a female Eastern Stonechat before
spots of rain started falling and bottles of beer started
calling, so it was back to the guesthouse to celebrate a great
day.
Doi Lang 9th March
We repeated our journey up Doi Lang, having checked out of
our accommodation. This time just before we got to the stakeout
area we spotted a pair of Mountain Bamboo Partridges which
both Pieter and Roger were able to get beautiful photos of
from the van. This excellent start got us into a good mood
and we went straight into the Laughingthrush stakeout, having
the spot to ourselves on this day. However, mealworms did
not lure that many birds out, probably the wet weather had
made foraging in the forest rather easy, making soft-bodied
invertebrates rise to the top of the soil. Still, we got better
photos of Silver-eared Laughingthrush, Slaty-blue Flycatcher
and Rufous-gorgetted Flycatcher due to better light conditions
before I heard a Spot-breasted Parrotbill out on the road.
We quickly got out onto the road and making sure we were
ready for the birds I played a short burst of call playback
and 2 birds were out, perched on some vegetation. As Roger
and Pieter fired off dozens of shots I leaned over Roger's
shoulder and one-handed fired off a hopeful shot that turned
out rather well. Sometimes you can just get lucky!
We decided to use our remaining time looking for birds along
the road and a few kilometres further on we found a few interesting
species. A pair of calling Long-tailed Broadbills came close
enough for a couple of dodgy photos and some Long-tailed Sibias
flew across the road but it was a Chestnut-vented Nuthatch
that we will remember most from this stop as it kept coming
in to call playback but stayed frustratingly high in the trees
until eventually it flew over our heads and landed on a banana
plant where we were able to photograph it and get some rather
unusual pictures of this common bird.
With the heat beginning to build we decided that if we left
now we could go to Doi Ang Kang for a few hours and check
out another stakeout there. However, as we left we definitely
felt like we could have spent more time at Doi Lang and that
some of the photos we obtained would be the best of the trip.
I guess we did not realize what a successful trip this would
turn out to be.
Doi Ang Kang 9th March
Years before the route from Fang up to Doi Lang had been "discovered"
by birders I had been in the area before and we found a through
road from Doi Lang to Doi Ang Kang without having to go back
to the main road; we ended up in the hilltribe village of
Ban Nor Lae. Having lunch in the army camp there we took in
the view at the Thai-Myanmar border and searched for some
Purple Sunbirds that are usually there but to no avail. Our
aim was not to struggle to find birds but to look for photographic
opportunities so we headed into the King's Project at Doi
Ang Kang to check out a stakeout.
Last year we had visited this spot and seen a lot of birds
but the light had been so intense that the photos were not
what had been hoped for so this was a chance to improve. The
light conditions were better, with flatter light and after
a short wait we had Oriental Magpie Robin, White-rumped Shama,
Hill Blue Flycatcher and White-tailed Robin showing themselves.
A few months previous there had been a whole mob of Black-breasted
Thrushes here but at this time of day there was no sign of
any; perhaps if we had been here in the morning we would have
got one. We had a walk around the gardens managing a shot
of a Long-tailed Shrike but with a 3 hour drive back to Chiang
Mai in front of us we decided to move off.
A brief stop at the Chinese cemetery was very quiet but we
did see a Large Hawk Cuckoo and the drive back to Chiang Mai
was uneventful and we arrived with time to relax for a while
before having dinner together in a restaurant that specialized
in northern Thai food.
Doi Inthanon National Park 10th March
Thailand's highest mountain is a location that Roger, Pieter
and I visited together last year and whilst it is a good place
for seeing some good birds it proved very difficult for photography
with most of the birds moving quickly and high in trees, so
this year I planned on visiting only those spots in the park
that could give us good chances of getting pictures; at Doi
Inthanon that means the summit where there are lots of birds
that are virtually tame.
>We grabbed some breakfast from a 7/11 store in Chiang Mai
after a very early start. This trip did not see us getting
up really early too often but as we were starting from Chiang
Mai and headed to the top of Doi Inthanon I did not want us
to get there late considering we only had one day. Towards
the end of the day we did not regret the decision.
Before reaching the top we made a stop at Watcharitan waterfall
to look for Slaty-backed Forktail. However, this usually reliable
bird was not to be easily found and although I hunted it down
along the river it was not performing very well and I decided
that it was best to get to the summit and return here later
and hope that we would get luckier then.
The summit of Doi Inthanon is a wonderful place with mossy
forest, orchids and birds that do not know that they are supposed
to be scared of humans. I usually spend a short time up here
finding all the specialities for visitors but today we had
the luxury of spending almost all day hanging around, observing
some really wonderful birds and getting some lovely photos.
At first things were a bit tricky and a little chilly too
with the sun having not quite made it onto the forest. One
of the first birds that presented itself was Yellow-bellied
Fantail, a real little beauty when seen closely. Soon, though,
we heard a Pygmy Wren Babbler and we followed the bird, getting
glimpses here and there, until it was very close but unfortunately
when it posed for a photo, everyone had their camera settings
wrong and the only picture obtained was completely out of
focus.
Our next target was Green-tailed Sunbird which was feeding
on a flowering rhododendron and we spent up to an hour here
struggling with intense light conditions and very fast-moving
birds. In the end both the female and male were photographed
well by Pieter and Roger (although I only got nice pictures
of the female) as well as Buff-barred Leaf Warbler.
Throughout the day the summit served us really well with Grey-sided
Thrush, Yellow-bellied Flowerpecker and Bar-throated Minlas
coming to a fruiting tree, Snowy-browed Flycatcher and Blue
Whistling Thrush coming to mealworms and Silver-eared Laughingthrush
plus Rufous-winged Fulvettas everywhere.
I always get a kick out of the antics of some of the birds
up here and seeing crowds of people videoing Silver-eared
Laughingthrushes using their ipads and phones as the birds
forage right next to them was really amusing. At the end of
the day most of the people left the summit and the Bar-throated
Minlas emerged to clean up the mess. I got some nice photos
of them from about 2 feet way while Roger got a funny photo
of one raiding the coffee stand.
It was also interesting to observe Blyth's Leaf Warbler at
length, performing its characteristic wing-shuffling action.
This is often described as "wing-flicking" but that
does not accurately describe the action at all as the bird
displays an alternate shuffle of one wing at a time - quite
slowly.
We had enjoyed spending all day at the summit with just a
short break at Mr Daeng's for lunch, but with a few hours
of light remaining a second effort at photographing Slaty-backed
Forktail at Watcharitan waterfall was in order. This time
we found a pair of these wonderful birds quite quickly and
a little play of the call lured them in fairly close but they
flew off before any pictures could be obtained. Eventually
one bird perched on a fallen log, but with the light beginning
to fade it was just a little further away than desired. However,
some nice photographs were taken much to Roger and Pieter's
surprise.
This day at Doi Inthanon was really wonderful and I know that
Pieter and Roger enjoyed it as much as I did. Although we
spent all our time on just a few species and ignored many
good birding spots on the mountain, it had been great to relax
and enjoy our time without any pressure and in the end we
saw and photographed some really good birds. This was one
of my favourite days of the whole tour.
Mae Wong National Park 11-13th March
After yesterday's very early start we had a leisurely breakfast
and a look around the grounds of Inthanon Highland Resort.
Whilst there were plenty of birds, they were all in high trees
and far away, with nothing coming close to giving us a chance
of photographing it.
 Bird
Photography Trips in Thailand:
Thailand has a large community of bird photographers
and this has led to a number of excellent stakeouts
for birds being established. By combining visiting
stakeouts with wetlands and other places where
birds are abundant Thailand is a great place for
bird photography trips.
Contact me to arrange a birding trip and/or to
discuss the best bird watching options for you:
nickupton@thaibirding.com |
|
Spot-breasted Laughingthrush
(Photo by Nick
Upton) |
Species we did see included Lineated Barbet, Coppersmith
Barbet, Asian Barred Owlet, Rufous Treepie and Greater Racket-tailed
Drongo, but we decided to head off towards Mae Wong where
we knew that some really great species had been coming to
some photographic stakeouts.
The journey from Doi Inthanon to Mae Wong took around 5 hours
with a stop for lunch at Tak. On arrival at Mae Wong we checked
into our accommodation and went straight into the national
park. We paid the entrance fee at the gate and then went to
the HQ to get our note to allow us up the road to Chong Yen
campsite.
The photographic stakeouts at Mae Wong are becoming extremely
popular and contrary to the information that we had been given,
it turned out that it was necessary to book certain spots
in advance. As we had not done this and there were lots of
other photographers around we had to wait our turn for certain
birds. However, ranger Annan, who organizes the photography
sites here was extremely helpful and I told him what we were
hoping to achieve in the couple of days that we were at Mae
Wong and he really tried hard to get us into places for the
species we wanted to photograph. Annan does not speak English
much but he is helpful and those who cannot speak Thai will
be able to make themselves understood easily enough.
Our first afternoon was spent at a site that Rusty-naped Pitta
frequents. Unfortunately, this was not the right time for
this bird and we were never able to get to this spot at the
8am "performance time" that was required. Others
who were there at this time saw the Pittas, but only for very
brief periods. We did, however, photograph Streaked Wren Babbler
and Rufous-browed Flycatcher here as well as Grey Wagtail.
A Northern White-crowed Forktail also showed up but was scared
away before anyone had a chance to photograph it. Another
session, the next morning, at this spot allowed Pieter and
Roger to get nice pictures of a caeruleus Blue Whistlingthrush
and while they were doing this I walked along the road, seeing
Burmese Yuhina, Hodgson's Hawk Cuckoo and a party of 4 Long-tailed
Sibias.
On our second day, after trying again for the Pittas, we sat
at a waterhole that Annan told us attracted some birds on
a regular basis. Although it was slow we did get very close
views and excellent photos of a Chinese Leaf Warbler, a wonderful
Silver-eared Mesia and a pair of Small Niltavas. The blind
was pretty cramped so with this success we walked a short
distance back to Chong Yen where we were shown where Flavescent
Bulbul and Silver-eared Mesias were feeding and bathing. Things
were a bit slow but by lunchtime we had top quality photographs
of seven species of birds so we were happy.
After lunch we were hoping to have a chance at Grey Peacock
Pheasant and Rufous-throated Partridge but as they had not
performed in the morning or the previous afternoon, there
was a backlog of photographers at the main stakeout for these
birds and we were not able to get in. However, Annan took
us to a second spot for them, telling us that they had been
seen there sometimes. He baited the spot with split grain
and left us in his blind to wait.
We did not feel optimistic about this setup at all, with the
so-called "stakeout" being in the middle of the
trail from Chong Yen campsite. Things seemed even worse when
3 tourists from Russia walked straight through the spot and
just as we were getting out of the blind to go somewhere else
I spotted a partridge emerging. Shoving Roger and Pieter back
into the blind I told them to start taking photos and 3 Rufous-throated
Partridges came out to feed on the grain. These birds stayed
for several minutes before moving off into the undergrowth
- amazing considering that moments before it had looked disastrous.
We spent some more time waiting and the tourists came back
through the feeding area but I think it was the discomfort
of the blind that made Roger and Pieter decide to abandon
the spot and go back to the area where we had photographed
birds bathing earlier in the day.
I returned to where the partridges had been and went and made
a bit of a disturbance at where the grain was lying - sometimes
these birds at stakeouts listen for a bit of human disturbance
as their cue. Incredibly, I had only retreated for a few moments
when a Grey Peacock Pheasant began to emerge from the undergrowth.
I ran back to Pieter and Roger as fast as I could and hurried
them back. When we returned it had gone but I knew it would
come back as it had not had a chance to feed. Moments later
it was out again and some wonderful photos were obtained -
even I managed to get some reasonable pictures and some video
clips. We had to laugh afterwards that we had managed to photograph
two fantastic species despite our best efforts to mess things
up.
After we had finished laughing and checking our photos we
went and sat at the blind next to the water again and were
lucky that the three Rufous-throated Partridges came in for
a drink and allowed for another set of lovely photos.
We had been told that the gate back at HQ would be locked
at 6pm and we would not be able to get back to our guesthouse
after that time we headed downhill. However, we arrived at
a locked gate at 6.15pm and there was nobody around; things
did not look good. Eventually, though, a ranger showed up
on a motor cycle and let us out. Dinner was eaten at the nearby
town of Klong Lan and we had a beer together back at Makbun
resort.
For our final morning at Mae Wong the sporadic showing of
Rusty-naped Pitta meant that there was a backlog of photographers
at that site and that we were not able to get in there early,
so ranger Annan led us to spot where he hoped some small birds
would come in to mealworms. He was right but we had a lot
of waiting between birds and unfortunately, the light was
not really sufficient for good photos. However, a male White-tailed
Robin, a Rufous-browed Flycatcher, a male Hill Blue Flycatcher
and a Buff-breasted Babbler did arrive and some decent photos
were obtained with some skillful use of very expensive lenses.
Later in the morning we ended up back at the site where we
saw the Peacock Pheasant and placed down some meal worms again.
Some nice birds performed well for us, including Grey-cheeked
Fulvetta, Rufous-browed Flycatcher, Silver-eared Laughingthrush,
Flavescent Bulbul and a male Hill Blue Flycatcher allowing
for some great photos.
After it became clear that no other species would appear we
decided that our time at Mae Wong was over and that we should
move on to Nakorn Sawan. As we left, we reflected on our time
at Mae Wong; it had been good, with lots of opportunities
to get close to birds but there had been lots more waiting
then we had anticipated and no shows from species that we
had been led to believe were very reliable. But, we all decided
that it did not matter, we had had a good time and some great
experiences with some great birds that are hard to find.
It took about 2 hours to drive from Chong Yen campsite to
the town of Nakorn Sawan where we had time to check into our
hotel and take a rest before heading to our next stop, Bueng
Boraphet.
Bueng Boraphet 13-14th March
Bueng Boraphet is a semi-natural lake just outside of the
city of Nakorn Sawan. Many bird watchers do not visit the
site as most of the species that are likely to be seen there
are easily seen elsewhere in Asia, but the amazing abundance
of birds and access on a slow-moving boat means that it is
a superb site for photographers.
On our first afternoon we spent a few hours walking around
the "Nok Nam Park" on the south side of the lake
where we were able to photograph some of the commoner open
country species such as Pied Fantail, Common Myna, Oriental
Magpie Robin as well as a Coppersmith Barbet coming to its
next hole and a Lineated Barbet feeding on a fruiting tree.
This was a nice finish to a nice day and we enjoyed a good
dinner and a few drinks together in the evening.
On the next morning we got to the "Nok Nam Park"
to begin our boat trip at 8am; it was nice not to have to
get up at the crack of dawn. Pieter, Roger and I got ourselves
comfortable on the boat and off we went. We had hardly gone
any distance when our boatman, Phanom, spotted a Yellow Bittern
which was very obliging and allowed us to get really close.
Once again, we did not spend our time racing around trying
to find every last species of bird that could be found on
the lake, or chasing birds that could only be seen at distance,
instead, we concentrated on getting close to birds, in beautiful
settings and getting the best light on them. In this way we
amassed a huge number of excellent photographs of many waterbird
species. One of the most wonderful things about doing things
this way was that it gave us time to observe the birds' behaviour
and get some images of them doing interesting things; this
is something that one often does not get the chance to do
on birding tours.
We spent around 3 hours on the boat, but never actually went
very far from our starting point due to the large number of
birds that were in the shallows and the expertise of our boatman,
slowly manoeuvring us as close as he could to the birds. Species
that we managed to get excellent photographs of here were
Great, Little and Intermediate Egrets, Yellow Bittern, Chinese
Pond Heron, Purple Heron, Purple Swamphen, Little Grebe, Little
Cormorant, Indian Cormorant, Oriental Reed Warbler, Cotton
Pygmy Goose, Garganey, Barn Swallow, Eastern Stonechat, Asian
Openbill, Black Drongo, Pheasant-tailed Jacana and Bronze-winged
Jacana as well as several other species photographed quite
well.
Our morning on the lake was another highlight of the trip
and we all agreed that a second morning there would have been
great and would have allowed us to chance after some species
that we had missed due to spending a lot of time on the ones
we had seen. Species such as Lesser Whistling Duck, Oriental
Darter, White-browed Crake and Pied Kingfisher would have
been ideal targets for a second morning here. As it was, it
was time for lunch in Nakorn Sawan and to move on to Khao
Yai.
Khao Yai 14-15th March
The drive to Khao Yai took about 3 hours in some quite heavy
traffic and storm clouds were building as we neared our accommodation
which was just a few kilometres from the park gate on the
north side of the national park. As it was getting late and
the weather looked bad in the hills we decided to spend our
time in a small government compound that is close to the park
gate where Red-breasted Parakeets nest in some large old trees.
We spent around 1 hour here before the rain began pouring
down and the Parakeets proved harder to photograph than anticipated
due to the fact that they were so high in the trees. Eventually,
though, we found one that was not too high and photos of this
bird and White-vented Myna were obtained. At our guesthouse
the storm had resulted in a power cut which meant cold showers
and no air conditioning. Fortunately the rain had brought
the temperature down to a bearable level.
Every bird tour has its highlights, so far ours had been the
stakeouts at Doi Lang, the summit of Doi Inthanon and our
morning at Bueng Boraphet. However, trips such as these inevitably
have their low points too and our next morning, at Khao Yai,
was to be that low point.
Khao Yai national park has long been a favourite of visiting
bird watchers but overuse of the park and mismanagement by
an unmotivated and unhelpful park administration have made
the roads busier than in the past and left trails unmaintained.
However, Pa Gluai Mai campsite is usually good for photographing
birds so we headed there in the morning. Unfortunately, things
were very quiet there with no fruiting trees and very few
birds. We did find Scarlet Minivet, Hill Myna, White-rumped
Shama, Blue Rock Thrush and Black-crested Bulbul but it was
really slow going.
Our best moments came at the Boonsong Lekagul camp where we
found the nest of a Thick-billed Green Pigeon. The female
was sitting on the nest while the male kept flying off to
a bare tree, breaking off twigs and then taking them back
to the female who would place them where she wanted them.
Every time the male came out to get more twigs he sat on the
same perch for a few seconds before launching himself off.
This allowed us to photograph him nicely.
A flyover Great Hornbill here was another highlight and Roger
managed to get a couple of decent shots of it in flight. However,
there were few other birds around and the overcast weather
gave us very bad light.
We moved to a known Great Hornbill nest site and the male
came to feed the female quite quickly but the position of
the nest meant that getting decent photos was basically impossible.
Somehow things were just hard work, no real bird activity,
bad light and it felt like we were struggling. Now, I am sure
that if we had remained in the forest and exercised the utmost
patience, sooner or later we would have got some good opportunities
to photograph some good birds but we were not really enjoying
ourselves this morning so we decided to leave Khao Yai and
head to our next locations a little early as we anticipated
much better things there, so we packed up and headed into
Bangkok where we had a relaxing evening and dinner. Strangely
enough, though, another storm resulted in another power cut
as we arrived at our hotel. The power came back on pretty
quickly though.
Nakorn Sri Kuan Kan Park, Bangkok, 16th March
We opted not to get up very early and instead have breakfast
at the hotel, spending a few hours at Sri Nakorn Kuan Park
where a few nice species of birds can usually be seen close
up. In reality we got to the park a little too late, about
7.45am, and it was extremely hot and humid after the previous
day's storm lingering. However, despite how uncomfortable
the climate was we saw some nice birds and got several great
photos.
At first we struggled to get any birds close enough or in
good enough light to photograph but a couple of Pied Fantails
cooperated for a short time and when we climbed up the bird
watching tower we were presented with close up views of both
Greater Racket-tailed Drongo and Pink-necked Green Pigeon;
they both hung around long enough for Pieter and Roger to
get some nice shots. Pink-necked Green Pigeon is a real speciality
of this park and is just about the best place in Thailand
to see and photograph this lovely bird and it was one of the
main reasons we visited this location.
We also saw a few migratory species from the tower, including
2 Black Bazas, a Black-winged Cuckooshrike and several Black-naped
Orioles. It is always funny to see birds like this in Bangkok.
Things began to slow down so we decided to head towards Petchaburi
but on the way out of the park we came across some very obliging
Collared Kingfishers and a Vinous-breasted Starling perched
on a wire. This is an uncommon bird but regular in this park
and luckily, the wire looked something like bamboo in the
photographs obtained - with none of us being fans of photos
of birds on wires, we were happy with this. With five species
photographed very well this had turned into a decent morning
stop on our way out of the city.
Tung Bang Jak & Wat Khao Takrao, 16th March
After checking into the Sun Hotel, in Petchaburi, and having
lunch we spent the late afternoon in the rice fields close
to Petchaburi where there are always large numbers of birds,
our intention being to drive along the network of small roads
here and use the vehicle as a hide to get close to the birds.
This is a really good time of year to be in these rice fields
with Baya, Asian Golden and Streaked Weavers all in breeding
plumage and constructing their nests. We quickly found a colony
of Baya Weavers that were very actively nest building and
allowed us to get close. We spent twenty minutes or so watching
their amusing behaviour and taking a lot of photos of them
chasing each other around and perching on their amazing nests.
Males begin construction of the nests and females will come
and inspect them, if they are not up to scratch the females
will reject the nest and the males will often start a new
nest and maybe later come back to the first one again later.
In the photo here you can see that this nest has been built
in two stages with the old, dry material at the top and fresh,
green material further down.
Driving a little further down the road we located a small
colony of Asian Golden Weavers, with several males in stunning
breeding plumage and we enjoyed these for some time and were
very pleased with some of the images obtained.
A couple of other birds that are in breeding plumage at this
time of year are the pond herons. In non-breeding plumage
Chinese and Javan Pond Herons are inseparable (don't rely
on the idea of them being separable on the colour of the wing
tips, that is just wear and tear on the feathers) but at this
time of year they are both quite beautiful birds and we had
lots of opportunities to obtain pictures of both species in
varying states of plumage.
Over the next hour or so we had lots of opportunities to photograph
open country species with many Asian Openbills loafing around
that were hard not to keep photographing even though it was
easy to get good shots of them quickly - these birds are present
in huge numbers here these days. A juvenile Pied Harrier came
in very close and a Black-naped Oriole teased us in a tree
before giving itself up. Other birds we got photos of included
White-vented Myna, Green Bee-eater, Red-wattled Lapwing, Little
Egret and Eastern Cattle Egret.
With our success here I decided to take Pieter and Roger to
some pools near Wat Khao Takrao where I knew there would be
large numbers of Painted Storks feeding. By driving around
a dirt track we were able to get close enough to these colourful
giants for some nice shots even though the light was starting
to fade a little. Many other birds were also feeding in the
shallow water of this pool and we also managed photos of Black-winged
Stilt, Wood Sandpiper, Great Egret and Common Sandpiper here.
A small group of Long-tailed Macaques were also made interesting
photographic subjects.
We were hoping for the chance to take some photos back out
in the rice fields in the soft late afternoon light but unluckily
the skies began to cloud up, with a storm in the distance,
and instead of the nice glow we were anticipating it just
got gloomy and too dark for taking nice photos, so we headed
back to our hotel and enjoyed a nice dinner before watching
some Premier League football on television.
Pak Thale & Laem Pak Bia, 17-18th March
These two adjacent sites are the premier sites in Thailand
for shorebirds and one of the world wader hotspots with many
rare species regularly wintering here, including the critically
endangered Spoon-billed Sandpiper. The previous year we had
managed to see all the species that we had hoped for and some
photos of Spoon-billed Sandpiper were obtained, but not as
good as hoped for so we went in search of this bird first
thing.
On arrival at the Spoon-billed Sandpiper site we could see
quite a few bird watchers already there and they were spread
out all over the place. A quick look showed us that the Spoon-billed
Sandpipers were quite distant, on a drained pool so we decided
to move elsewhere and concentrate on getting as close as we
could to birds and photograph them while the light was good.
One of the first species we were able to get great pictures
of was a fine Javan Pond Heron in breeding plumage with the
morning light illuminating it and bringing the colours vividly
out. By slowly making our way around the salt farms at Pak
Thale we were able to get really beautiful photographs of
several species of shorebirds, including Red-necked Stint,
Temminck's Stint, Long-toed Stint, Marsh Sandpiper, Broad-billed
Sandpiper, Pacific Golden Plover and Wood Sandpiper; all common
birds but all with very intricate feather detail when you
see them close up.
A visit to nearby Wat Komnaram gave us time for some "touristic"
temple photos as well as some surprisingly nice shots of Feral
Pigeons, a species that we had largely ignored but this was
our time to get it onto our "species photographed list".
However, the main reason for me to bring Pieter and Roger
here was to photograph oriental Pratincole and Oriental Skylark,
both of which nest in a huge field in front of the temple.
We managed to get very lucky with the skylarks very close
to the van as we entered the area and some really nice images
were obtained of this bird walking around in the grass.
The pratincoles were rather more distant but Pieter said that
he had managed to stalk pratincoles in Europe before so we
tried moving slowly towards some. Incredibly we got very close
to them before they started to move which was our cue to leave
them alone. Another couple of Oriental Pratincoles further
along allowed us to get even closer and both Roger and Pieter
got stunning photos; mine were ok too.
I decided that it was time to head to Laem Pak Bia where a
road into the salt farms allows close contact with many wader
species. Although there were not as many birds as I expected
here, we found a small patch of mud with some birds feeding
on it and drove very, very slowly up to it. We just sat in
the van and Red-necked Stint, Temminck's Stint, Little Ringed
Plover and Long-toed Stint all came closer as they were feeding.
It was amazing to see how close they came and in our photographs
we could see every aspect of their plumage as well as being
able to see the long toes of the Long-toed Stint under the
water! This was a fantastic experience.
After this a visit to the King's Project revealed that the
sewage settling pools had been drained and that it had left
a lot of scummy water, full of dead fish and feeding birds.
Being able to drive right up to many of the birds here it
was fantastic for taking pictures with Red-wattled Lawping,
Paddyfield Pipit, Great Egret, Ruff, Spotted Redshank, Common
Redshank, Wood Sandpiper, Little Egret, Marsh Sandpiper, Brown
Shrike, Red-necked Stint and Black-winged Stilt all being
photographed here. My favourite was the Common Redshank in
the colourful scum with a dead fish behind it - you can see
the photo on the right.
After a visit to a dump for some Green Bee-eaters and Plain-backed
Sparrows the time was 11.20am and the sun was intense making
it almost impossible to take photos without them being ruined
by shadows and glare so we went back for a break and lunch.
Heading out again at 3.30pm we hoped for that nice afternoon
light, only to be presented with grey skies and a potential
storm again. The windy and gloomy weather conditions made
things difficult and the fact that the tide was way out and
all the waders were in the distance on the mudflats cut our
options. Still, we managed to find a few interesting birds
and Pieter got the most unusual photograph of a male Plain-backed
Sparrow collecting nest material from a dead and desiccated
dog! We caught up with some other open country birds but this
ended up being a bit of a disappointing afternoon. With the
rain imminent we went back to the hotel for dinner and drinks.
Our second morning at these sites saw us go looking for Spoon-billed
Sandpiper again. This time we had the site to ourselves and
we soon found one of these endangered birds feeding with a
flock of stints. Unfortunately it was too far away to take
good photos of but I spotted another Spoon-billed Sandpiper
in a much better spot and with some very slow stalking we
got really close to it and very many shots of it were taken.
This success set us up for another good morning and we again
used the van as a hide. Over the course of the morning we
photographed many of the same birds as the previous day but
also added breeding plumage Kentish Plover, Brown-headed Gull,
Caspian Tern, Plain Prinia, Curlew Sandpiper, breeding plumage
Red-necked Stint, Lesser and Greater Sand Plovers and Common
Tern. Finishing with some great photos of Spotted Redshank
at around 11am we began our drive to Ban Maka where we would
be staying for the last few days of our trip.
Being able to take the time to get close to shorebirds at
Pak Thale and Laem Pak Bia allowed us to take great photos
of many species and was yet another highlight of this trip.
18-20th March, Kaeng Krachan
The drive to our accommodation at Ban Maka took about 1.5
hours so that we were there in time for lunch. The restaurant
here overlooks a feeding station on a large log where several
species can usually be seen. Over the next couple of days
we managed to photograph Streak-eared Bulbul, White-rumped
Shama and Red Junglefowl here as well as Grey-bellied Squirrel
and Burmese Striped Squirrel. After lunch a quick walk around
the garden also produced a very obliging Drongo Cuckoo which
sat out in the open for some time.
We had intended to visit Lung Sin Hide where lots of birds
can usually be photographed but with yesterday's rain and
another storm looming the waterhole there was not likely to
be at its best so we went to check out Ban Song Nok. Unfortunately
the news was not good and the ongoing wet weather had resulted
in few birds visiting this usual hotspot. However, the owner
kindly showed us a roosting Large-tailed Nightjar which we
were able to get great pictures of.
With the storm imminent we went to a small orchard where we
had been told Vernal Hanging Parrots were visiting and got
there a few minutes before the downpour. We were able to photograph
Brown-throated Sunbird, a juvenile Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker
and a Vernal Hanging Parrot before having to take shelter.
Although this rain could have dampened our spirits we waited
it out and made the best of what time was remaining by driving
around the area near Ban Maka and we got some nice photographs
of Greater Coucal, White-breasted Waterhen and Barn Swallows
before going back for dinner.
The morning of the 19th saw us heading into Kaeng Krachan
national park. We knew that photography here would be difficult,
as it always is in the forest, but I knew a few spots where,
if we were patient, we would get close to a few great birds.
On the way in we stopped for a Vinous-breasted Starling and
a very nice Indochinese Bushlark, singing from the top of
a pile of gravel - a good start. We drove straight to Bang
Krang camspite which usually is quite birdy; but not today!
Despite my best attempts to call out birds nothing responded
but we did find a lovely male Yellow-rumped Flycatcher which,
after some effort, Roger and Pieter got some good shots of.
A few other common birds were photographed here but we decided
to move further into the forest where I knew there was something
special awaiting us; a pair of roosting White-fronted Scops
Owls. These posing birds allowed for wonderful photos of a
bird which is very scarce and usually hard to see.
Walking along the road a little we got the result I was hoping
for after some patient waiting. First of all an Asian Barred
Owlet sat out in the open for us and shortly after I called
in a pair of Silver-breasted Broadbills which were carrying
nest material; both really nice species to get photos of.
The next bird to show itself was Sultan Tit. We had been hoping
for these but they were way up the top of some trees. However,
we followed them along as they fed and after some time they
descended and came very close allowing lots of time for photographs
of them. Whilst we were with the Sultan Tits some other birds
presented themselves too, showing that patience is rewarded;
Swinhoe's Minivet, Crimson Sunbird and Ochraceous Bulbul.
By this time it was rather hot and the bird activity was decreasing
so we went back to Ban Maka for lunch and a very nice Grey-headed
Woodpecker feeding on the lawn, which we were alerted to by
the owner, before going to Lung Sin Hide for the afternoon.
This hide overlooks a small, man-made, waterhole and can be
quite spectacular, attracting lots of common birds as well
as some real stars. The hide must be booked in advance and
for those that do not speak Thai this is best done by contacting
Ban Maka or Samarn Bird Camp first. The fee is 200 baht per
person and the hide(s) can fit a maximum of nine people. I
had been visiting this location regularly so knew that a few
really good birds were expected but with the weather making
the whole forest wet the possibility of a wash out was high.
As it had been raining in the late afternoon I decided to
go to the hide much earlier than normal, at 1pm. This is because
I figured that birds would come to drink and bathe at the
hottest part of the day and that the late afternoon would
be wet (the late afternoon is when the most birds usually
arrive to bathe under normal conditions).
Things started off slowly and it started to seem like I had
put us in the hot hide for nothing but then things started
to happen, including one of our most hoped for birds - Slaty-legged
Crake which came in twice to bathe - quite wonderful and as
the crake never came back again it justified my decision to
get to the hide early.
Over the course of the next 4.5 hours we were treated to some
wonderful birds and the waterhole was always full of activity.
In this time we obtained high quality photos of almost every
bird that arrived to drink, feed and bathe: Red Junglefowl,
Bar-backed Partridge, Scaly-breasted Partridge, Racket-tailed
Treepie, Lesser Necklaced Laughingthrush, Greater Necklaced
Laughingthrush, Black-naped Monarch, Abbott's Babbler, Puff-throated
Babbler, Pin-striped Tit Babbler, Tickell's Blue Flycatcher,
Brown-cheeked Fulvetta, White-rumped Shama, Black-crested
Bulbul, Streak-eared Bulbul, Stripe-throated Bulbul - what
a bounty! Only one bird was seen but not photographed at Lung
Sin Hide, Large Scimitar-babbler which never came out into
the open.
This location really provided one of the highlights of the
trip, perhaps the most outstanding moments, which was no mean
feat considering some of the great moments we had enjoyed.
In addition to the birds we also saw and photographed 5 species
of mammals at Lung Sin Hide - Grey-bellied Squirrel, Indochinese
Ground Squirrel, Burmese Striped Squirrel, Northern Treeshrew
and Lesser Mouse Deer as well as a nice Skink which posed
as it took a drink.
After this afternoon, quite frankly, we were on a high as
we ate a very nice dinner at Ban Maka. |
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