A.W.Birder: Always on the lookout for fine birds...: Thailand Trip Report

Showing posts with label Thailand Trip Report. Show all posts

Sunday, 3 July 2016

Thailand June 2016

I had a nice couple of weeks back over in Thailand in June after finishing up with the consultancy work. It wasn't totally all about the birding on this trip but I did go down to the south of the country for a bit of birding around Krabi, Khao Nor Chu Chi NP and Khao Sok NP. It rained most of the time I was down here but I still managed a couple of nice birds during a couple of wet walks,such as the following highlights:

Mangrove Pitta
Hooded Pitta
Blue-winged Pitta
Ruddy Kingfisher
Brown-winged Kingfisher
Red-bearded Bee-eater
Oriental Paradise-Flycatcher (white morph with long tail)
Rufous-winged Philontoma
Vernal Hanging-Parrot

Also saw a couple of cool reptiles, such as Cross-bearing Tree Lizard and Crested Forest Lizard.

Ruddy Kingfisher

Cross-bearing Tree Lizard

Crested Forest Lizard

Sunday, 7 February 2016

Spoon-billed Sandpipers Galore!

I've been having some great encounters with a few different Spoon-billed Sandpipers over the last few days during a Birding Ecotours customized tour of Thailand. After my India trip, and Baer's Pochard twitch I decided to go to Pak Thale before my tour to check out the area and see what the birds were doing this year. Once there I found at least two un-ringed/un-flagged Spoon-billed Sandpipers, and got some good views of both birds. I was pleased as managed to get some better phone-scoped shots than my previous visits to the site.

Fast forward to the back end of this week (after an exciting few days in Kaeng Krachan - more on that later) when the tour arrived in the Pak Thale/Laem Pak Bia area for a couple of days looking for waders such as the Spoon-billed Sandpiper and other goodies like Nordmann's Greenshank, Asian Dowitcher etc. We were not disappointed on out first day with very good views of a fairly close Spoon-billed Sandpiper. It gave close views as it preened on a little mud island on one of the salt pans. Very satisfying views.

Then yesterday we went back to try for them again on our way through to Bangkok, time of day was not ideal and it was blowing a gale but I managed to find two birds together, one of these was leg-flagged and the other was 'clean'. It was clear that one of these birds was fast approaching our position so we all got into the dirt and lay in wait for it to come closer. Amazingly the bird came and fed within 12ft of us! This was my best view to date and it finally allowed me to get some photos with my camera rather than relying on phone-scoping it!

Needless to say we were all mighty happy with this view! Some photos below followed by some info on the ringed bird.

Spoon-billed Sandpiper U6

Spoon-billed Sandpiper - un-ringed bird (IPhone-scoped Swarovski ATX95 and IPhone 6s)

A quick search about the ringed bird photographed above - U6 - shows that it is a 'head-started' bird.

Born in July 2015. It was cared for in its early days until fledging and left its natal area of Chukotka, Far East Russia on 5th August 2015.
It was seen and photographed at Yuboo Island, South Korea on 28th September 2015 where it was present until 28th October 2015 (also in the presence of several other birds).
It was next seen and photographed at Pak Thale, Thailand on 29th November and I saw it there yesterday, 6th February 2016!

More details of the incredibly important conservation effort to save the Spoon-billed Sandpiper can be found on the Saving the Spoon-billed Sandpiper website here.

If you want to come and look for these stunning waders and a load more amazing birds why not join me on a Birding Ecotours trip in 2017? The shear number of waders in this area is simply staggering and is made up by over 40 species, including some globally threatened species!

Friday, 22 January 2016

BAER'S POCHARD!!!

Sorry for the delay in posts/news over the last three weeks. Internet and time during my tour was hit and miss, will catch up with posts on India soon (It was great! - 400+ species including some of the best birds in the world, and some more feline activity...), but for now I'm back in Thailand. Have been having a bit of R&R in Bangkok the last couple of days and have just started a 10 day trip to a few places.

First up on the list of places to go was Bueng Boraphet about 4 hours north of Bangkok, for one reason. Baer's Pochard. One of the rarest ducks in the world. Three birds had turned up on the lake whilst I was in India and I decided to head straight across for them once I'd organised myself. Baer's Pochard used to be fairly frequent, even a common winter visitor to Thailand but the recent population crash (last 20 or so years) has seen this species become listed as Critically Endangered - I think there's only been a couple of records in Thailand in the last 5 years.

I heard an interesting talk by Dr Debbie Pain (Director of Conservation at the WWT) whilst at the Oriental Bird Clubs AGM in September last year and afterwards thought my chances of seeing this species were getting lower and lower by the minute! Lets hope all the work going into conserving this species works...

So late yesterday afternoon I got a boat out onto the lake and saw the three birds with a flock of Ferruginous Ducks, Common Pochard and Tufted Duck. Views were distant and not great and the light was practically gone so I decided to go back again this morning...

I headed out just after first light and after an hour or so of twisting through the various channels seeing numerous really nice birds we picked up the Aythya flock. It was apparent that the Baer's were not with them! After an hour or so of searching the surrounding area we picked them out and manoeuvred the boat towards them a little.

There was a pair of birds present, the third bird was out of sight still. I managed to get the following shots on my Iphone through my Swarovski ATX95 - not an easy task handheld on a rocking boat with moving ducks! But at least I've seen them and hopefully they are clear enough. I didn't want to be the one to flush them!

Baer's Pochard (male)

Baer's Pochard (female)

Baer's Pochard (male left and female right)

Thursday, 6 February 2014

Thaiscapes

Some landscape pictures from my Thailand trip. Full trip report here.

Doi Chiang Dao from the pools area

Doi Chiang Dao from the scrub

Wat Tamphaplong, Doi Chiang Dao

Sunrise at the base of Doi Inthanon

Sunrise onto Wat at the base of Doi Inthanon

Early morning on Doi Inthanon

Buddhist Monk on Doi Inthanon Summit

Sitrithan Waterfall, Doi Inthanon

Wachirathan Waterfall, Doi Inthanon

Doi Lang looking into Burma

Lake from Baan Maka, Kaeng Krachan

Chiang Saen Lake from a boat

Chiang Saen Lake from the Harrier Roost area

Sunday, 2 February 2014

Thailand Trip Report

I've finished my Thailand Birding Trip Report which is available below.

This was an excellent trip. I recorded 460 species with a lot of highlights! I've put a few pages of photos up already - will put some of the non-avian highlights/landscapes etc once I've sorted through those.

Part 1: http://awbirder.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/thailand-photos-part-1.html
Part 2: http://awbirder.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/thailand-photos-part-2.html
Part 3: http://awbirder.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/thailand-photos-part-3-uk-megas.html

Thailand Birding Trip Report Dec 13-Jan 14

Tuesday, 14 January 2014

Thailand Photos... Part 3 (the UK Megas...)

One of the highlights of my Thailand birding trip was seeing a range of passerines that would make any UK/WP birder salivate at the lips (not all necessary the best looking of birds but high value in the rarity stakes). These included birds such as Siberian Blue Robin, Siberian Rubythroat, Pallas's Grasshopper, Lanceolated, Thick-billed, Arctic, Eastern Crowned, Pale-legged Leaf, and Two-barred Greenish Warblers, Red-flanked Bluetail, Brown Shrike, Asian Brown and Taiga Flycatchers, Blue Rock Thrush, Eyebrowed Thrush, Daurian Redstart, Siberian and Stejneger's Stonechats, and Amur and Eastern Yellow Wagtails.

Along with the above there was some more regular passerine fare such as Richard's and Olive-backed Pipits, Little Bunting, Pallas's, Yellow-browed, Hume's, Dusky, Radde's and Greenish Warblers, Common Rosefinch, Bluethroat, Hoopoe, and Wryneck etc...

By now you'll be familiar with my photography prowess and it will come as no surprise that I didn't manage decent pics of most/any of the above (often in low light), though I did get a few record shots (below in no particular order)...

Siberian Blue Robin

Siberian Rubythroat

Red-flanked Bluetail

Blue Rock Thrush

Daurian Redstart

Taiga Flycatcher

Asian Brown Flycatcher

Little Bunting

Eastern Yellow Wagtail

Olive-backed Pipit

Amur Wagtail

Monday, 13 January 2014

Thailand Photos... Part 2

Here are a selection of random bird photos from my recent trip to Thailand... A few Cuckoos, Tits, Owls/Raptors, Thrushes, Flycatchers etc... nothing particular...

Still working through my list and will then get onto my trip report...

Asian Emerald Cuckoo