Spoon-billed Sandpiper
(Photo by Johan Svensson |
|
With
its unique appearance and increasingly endangered status,
it is easy to see why this species is such a popular target
bird. With the isolated location of its breeding grounds in
northeast Russia, Thailand, along with Saemangeum
in South Korea, offers birdwatchers the best
chance of finding Spoon-billed Sandpiper with not one, but
two reliable wintering locations: Khok
Kham regularly holds one or two birds and Pak
Thale regularly holds higher numbers. This species
has also been observed at Khao
Sam Roi Yot and other salt pans in Samut Songkram
province, indicating that it could be found in a number of
other locations in the Gulf of Thailand, or perhaps other
parts of the country.
With now
perhaps less than 400
breeding pairs remaining, the sighting of up
to 16 birds at Pak Thale in 2004 was significant, although
below the 31
seen at Simpo, South Korea on 26th May 2007. |