-By Ian Dugdale

On 9th May 2010 Games (Punjapa) Phetsri, Ian Dugdale and Dave Sargeant visited the Bala section of the Hala Bala Wildlife Sanctuary in the far South of Thailand. A total of eight days were spent walking the various trails and roads in the area.

In all 159 bird species were seen and a further 8 were heard. This includes an afternoon visit to the nearby peat swamp forest at Pa Pru.

We stayed in the excellent rooms at the research centre and were well looked after by the head Ranger Siriphon and her very helpful staff – lam, Chin and Lo, who showed us the best birding locations in the area and found some great birds for us including the owls and frogmouths.

Following is a selection of some of the more ‘special’ birds seen and attached is a complete list showing the location(s).

Crimson-winged Woodpecker, Orange-backed Woodpecker, Yellow-crowned Barbet, Rhinoceros Hornbill, Wrinkled Hornbill, Helmeted Hornbill, Blue-banded Kingfisher, Rufous-collared Kingfisher, Rusty-breasted Cuckoo, Blue-crowned Hanging Parrot, White-fronted Scops Owl, Reddish Scops Owl, Gould’s Frogmouth, Malaysian Eared Nightjar, Silver-breasted Broadbill, Crested Jay, Black-winged Flycatcher-shrike, Spotted Fantail, Grey-chested Jungle-flycatcher, Pale Blue Flycatcher, Malaysian Blue Flycatcher, Finsch’s Bulbul, Cinereous Bulbul, Horsfield’s Babbler, Chestnut-backed Scimitar-babbler, White-chested Babbler, Fluffy-backed Tit-babbler, Scarlet-breasted Flowerpecker, Red-throated Sunbird, Temminck’s Sunbird and Long-billed Spiderhunter.

There is an old birders trick that can help turn this time of boredom into a productive birding opportunity. In the scorching dry season, hanging out near a supply of fresh water can prove to be perfect for finding those birds which can seem shy and skulking, or those which prefer to hang out in the treetops and irritate birders by refusing to come down and allow us a better look. –Not to mention the pain we have to endure in our necks and backs!

Ian Dugdale took this batch of photos at Ton Pariwat Wildlife Reserve in Phang Nga last November and for some reason I never really got around to looking at it until now. –So here it is, for all to enjoy, and hopefully remind you to bring your blind, get out and head for a waterfall in the heat of the day as that may prove to be the “hot spot” of the day!

OK, the last little critter isn’t a bird, bit he was there, so … thrown in for good measure.

 Special thanks again to Ian for allowing me to post his wonderful photos on this website.

I had a few hours for birding before the sun set and being in Nakorn Sawan offered the opportunity to visit Beung Borapet, the largest and most well-known waterbird sanctuary in continental Thailand. Hoping to get better luck than my last trip, I decided to try to get Khun Panom, a local guide, to help me collect a few wanted species.

Sadly by the time I got to the bird sanctuary, the sun was beginning to set and Khun Panom was not available to take me out. I decided to take a walk along the nature trail which leads to the lookout tower near the White eyed River Martin Statues. The trail was longer than expected but with the cool weather and the constant bird activity, keeping busy was never an issue.

Talking with Khun Panom, I found out that the large flock of Spot billed Pelican was now reduced to one bird, and locating it was difficult since it seems to like to hide from humans. Black headed Ibis were still abundant and the Glossy Ibis seemed to be steady in their numbers. All the ducks had headed north as had the Black necked Grebe. I guess lifers would be harder to come by than I had expected.

The trail was long but I did get in a lot of very good birding and with all the birds busy looking for a place to settle for the night, I was able to come up with more species than I usually would have encountered. Openbill Storks were jockeying for space in tall trees and some trees seemed overburdened with the task of accommodating for some 300 plus storks! My presence seemed to solve the problem as once one bird got a little suspicious, all the storks in the entire tree would take to flight, and the sight of 300+ birds circling a mere couple of meters overhead is a spectacle one will not easily forget!

An interesting observation was noted in a tree near the parking lot where a small collection of Baya Weaver nests were built within the vicinity of a bee hive, showing that both the birds and the bees benefit from the company of each other.

Giant Water Monitors were seen, the largest seen being close to nine feet long, a giant which I was very glad to see slithering off into the water as I approached it.

Birds seen along the trail included White shouldered Starling, Yellow bellied Prinia, Thick billed Green Pigeon, Eurasian Koel, Zebra Dove, Red breasted Turtledove, Oriental Magpie Robin and Bright capped Cistacola.

At the end of the trail I decided to walk out on a path into the marsh rather than head back to the towers. I was rewarded with my first lifer, a Pied Kingfisher, in flight over the marsh. Birds I encountered on the trail included Yellow and Cinnamon Bittern, Grey and Purple Heron, Purple Swamphen, Watercock, Hoopoe, Long tailed Shrike, Chestnut capped Bee Eater, Blue tailed Bee Eater, White breasted Waterhen and Eurasian Kestrel.

A muddy patch about 140 meters from the trail was bustling with bird activity as birds were both feeding and looking for a place to settle for the night. Black winged Stilt, Intermediate and Little Egret, Cattle Egret, Chinese Pond Heron, Lesser Whistling Duck, Cotton Pigmy Goose and Little Grebe were all noted. I thought I spotted a single Glossy Ibis in the mix but I decided to not call it a lifer until I can actually verify it with better lighting.

By the time I started back the area was getting quite dark and it was only by chance that I was able to beat it to the car before the light had totally faded. A single thrush was seen hopping on the ground picking insects off the earth, and since it was too dark to fully ID it, I will have to settle for recording it as an Eyebrowed Thrush.

A pair of Red Wattled Lapwing were the last birds I encountered on the way out and Khun Panom came by to bid me farewell before I headed back to town, a 17 kilometer drive from the sanctuary.

With the drought in hand and little rainfall, Khun Panom mentioned I may have luck finding the Ibis on exposed patches on mud near the visitor center on the opposite side of the lake. I hope to try that site when I head back after a visit to Chiang Mai.

Total seen were 39 species with one definite lifer. -God is good!

I had to make a trip to Surat airport to drop off a friend as there were no available flights from Phuket, Krabi or Samui. Chinese New Year had been good to the tourist-dependent provinces of the south and the huge influx of Chinese from Hong Kong, Singapore, Macau and China helped to boost the local economy. The airports were bursting at the seams and even a week after the festivities were over, people were still trying to find a way off of Paradise Island.

The drive took 2.5 hours and I did not stop to look at anything along the way. Getting to the airport was of utmost importance.

At the airport we stopped to have breakfast in the cafeteria, which offers perhaps the cheapest airport food in all the country. –To add to that, it was also tasty and attractively prepared. The restaurant is located on the top floor and gives commanding views of the airport runway, allowing us to observe the take off of a Nok Air flight and two F-5 fighters on their routine morning sorties.

The view from the restaurant also allowed us to see over the marsh and scrubland where I was able to find a variety of birds, the only highlights being a Purple Heron and a breeding-dress Indian Pond Heron.

The drive back was more leisurely and with all the time in the world, I decided to do some scouting of the area for future trips. First stop was Cheio Lan Dam, home of Khao Sok National Park. The pier was bustling with activity with plenty of tourists heading for the floating bungalows near the national park side. One of the fishermen came out of the water with a “baby” Giant catfish weighing over 87 kilos. Apparently he’d caught a 200 kilo catfish last week so this one was a little on the smallish side.

Bird life was not too abundant so I moved on to Ao Phang Nga National park.

Arriving at the mangrove walkway at 1 PM was not a wise choice, or so I thought. Arctic Warbler and Common Tailorbird were the first to greet me and soon after I found a pair of Forest Wagtail snooping around the garbage heap. I played the pitta call once but there was no reply. Brown throated Sunbird came through, a young bird chasing after a mother. Next there was a Common Iora and a Olive backed Sunbird in a quarrel over something, and that kept the mangrove buzzing with activity.

No Ashy Tailorbird was seen, but I did get Yellow Vented and Streak eared Bulbuls.

The call of the Black and Red Broadbill caught my attention but a pair of noisy teenagers scared it off before I could get a good look at it. The newcomers were not all useless; they helped flush out a Mangrove Pitta, which was heard but not seen.

While waiting for the pitta to show, I found a pretty Yellow eared Spiderhunter which was feeding on a web full of spiderlings. The lighting was poor and I didn’t manage a single good shot of the lightning fast bird, even though I had over 40 attempts at it.

At last the Mangrove Pitta answered the call of the tape and it was then I discovered it was not a single bird, but four little jewels, each of them curious as to who else there could be in the area! One took up position in a tree while the other three sat in low branches near the floor, all the while calling to each other. I managed a good shot of the bird in the tree, which didn’t seem at all bothered that I was a mere 4 feet away. The other three soon took to the deeper forest and the last straggler bade a fond farewell (pooped on my shoes) before flying off to find it’s friends.

All in all, it was a magical time and the first time I managed to find the pitta on my very own, so that makes me happy. –It was also the first time I had that many pitta in a single sitting!

12 species in the mangroves and the pitta was the topping on the pie which made it all the sweeter!

Ian Dugdale, on a birding trip with Dave Sergeant and Games, found Black Headed Ibis at Thai Muang Golf Course on the 1st of February. This is a bird which has eluded me for a few years and I was hoping to finally get myself an honest look at the bird so I decided to make a trip to the beach with my kids the next day.

I arrived at the marsh shortly after 5 PM and after dropping off the kids at the beach, made my way on foot through the marsh. Golden Plover were abundant as were Paddyfeild Pipit. I managed to flush a single White fronted Plover and got good looks at it as it posed only a few meters from me.

Other birds encountered included Purple Swamphen, Black shouldered Kite, Grey headed Lapwing, Stonechat, Grey Wagtail, Watercock, Pin tailed Snipe, Common Kingfisher, Black Drongo, Brahminy Kite, Chinese Pond Heron and Red wattled Lapwing.

I wasn’t sure what I was looking for as far as size, but after scanning the fields and finding nothing but Intermediate and Little Egrets, I headed back to the car to try an adjacent road. By then it was 6 and with no sign of the bird, I was beginning to wonder if the bird would again elude me.

On the next road I found Japanese Sparrowhawk, Yellow vented Bulbul, Eurasian Koel, Greater Coucal, Great Egret and Germaine’s Swiftlet. Still no ibis.

Walking into the field once more I saw in the distance what looked like a bird with a very dirty bill. As I got closer I realized it was a Black headed Ibis! It was still a good 500 yards or so off so I stomped off through the fields go get closer. I had to keep my eyes glued to the floor as I didn’t want to step on a snake or encounter another scorpion like I’d seen a few minutes earlier. When I stopped to catch my breath, I glanced up so see another Black headed Ibis had landed scarcely 20 feet from me! We both stared at each other for the next five minutes as I just stood there, thrilled with the fact that I was finally looking at the bird which had eluded me for the last five years!

After a while I turned and made my way back to the car and the ibis, sensing I meant it no harm, went back to feeding in the mud. After getting in the car I still kept looking at it for a while until it started getting dark and I went off to pick up the kids at the beach.

Calling Ian to thank him for the tip, I found out he also had scored a lifer with a single Lesser Adjutant in flight on Koh Pratong.

At the beach we encountered four Malaysian Plover on a sandbar in the middle of the river and two River Lapwings on the beach.

Before leaving I wanted to let Rosie see the Ibis one time but it was hard to find in the waning light. Instead we came across five Large tailed Nightjar and a Barn Owl.

A total of 40 species were seen in two hours, and the Black headed Ibis is finally in the bag!

Special Thanks to Ian Dugdale for his tips on finding the bird.

Ian Dugdale reported seeing a large flock of 17 Rosy Starling at the Thai Muang Golf Course in the last days of December 2009. I was in Nakorn Sawan at the time and felt bad that I was unable to get this lifer, as I myself was having a tough birding trip, having missed out on seven potential lifers.

On Children’s Day, my wife and I had contemplated visiting the air force base in Surat Thani so my kids could see some airplanes. Due to a late morning start and a few grumpy kids, we decided to head out a little later and make for the navy base in Thap Lamru which was closer and still enabled my eldest son to see a helicopter in action as well as explore some naval vessels. By the early afternoon the sun was bearing down and my kids wanted to go swimming. I took this as a great opportunity to take the kids to a forest waterfall and get in some birding time as well.

Khao Lampi Waterfall was crowded and noisy and the park staff wanted to charge unreasonable prices for the holidays so we opted to go to the beach.

Thai Muang was the closest beach available and when I was reminded of the starlings at the golf course we decided to try it out.

After settling the kids and my wife on the deserted beach, I started my search for the starlings near the casuarinas near the former carpark. The area was rich in bird life an in little time I had myself 34 species. A tree near the large lake had a group of 30 Orange breasted Pigeons, making this site perhaps the best place to find this rather uncommon specimen. A tree in the far distance had a group of some 20 White shouldered Starlings and three Purple backed Starling, but aside from that, the area was void of any of the rare migrants we were looking for.

Around the old golf track I connected with Hoopoe, Pacific Golden Plover, Blue tailed and Chestnut capped Bee Eater, Common Snipe, Pink necked Pigeon, Little, Intermediate and Great Egret and Lesser Coucal. White throated, Common, Collared and Black capped Kingfisher were all seen in a little creek near the center of the course, making it a good day for kingfishers.

After an hour of birding I had 42 species but still no sign of the starling. It is not uncommon to discover a species of starling in an area only to find they have moved on a few days later and I was beginning to think perhaps I was not going to see anything new on this trip. The area is very large and it would only take a miracle of God to find these little birds in time before the sun set.

I decided to go back to the old spot where I had sighted the first group of starlings to see if they had returned. At the casuarinas I spotted them again but approach was difficult and I ended up using the car as a blind as the birds were very skittish.

Initially I had noticed only 15 or so birds foraging in the tree but closer observation revealed a very large number of roosting birds hidden among the droopy boughs of the casuarinas. While the majority of the birds were full grown White shouldered Starling (30 or so birds), I did find around 10 Chestnut Cheeked Starling and 10 Purple backed Starling. I had my best views yet of the Chestnut cheeked Starling, a beautiful bird which was only discovered to winter here a few years ago by Stijin De Win on one of his birding trips to the area.

Even after seeing those birds I still felt disheartened that I was unable to get a few lifers when suddenly a pair of reddish-colored starlings flew up from the ground, scared off by an egret in low flight. I hardly believed by eyes when I realized they were Brahminy Starling! With this I got out of the car to get a closer look, almost trampling a Barred Buttonquail in the process. The flock of birds, being skittish as ever, took to a looping flight around the tree and it was then I was able to count around 50-60 mixed starlings in the group. After they had landed I called Ian to tell him the good news and ask him the whereabouts of the Rosy Starling.

Ian told me many of the Rosy Starling he’d seen were juvenile, so I began scanning through the many White shouldered Starling and finally found a single juvenile Rosy sitting very still and quietly in a branch. The reason for its inactive behavior was discovered minutes later when a group of mature Chestnut Cheeked Starlings came by and began persecuting it until it was finally chased off of the tree.

The birds were feeding on something on the branches of the tree, what I could not see, but they were systematically making their way through the branches as they picked through the bark, picking up what could have been insects or grubs.

Contented and shaking with excitement, I hopped back into the car and barely made it a few feet down the road when I looked up in a nearby tree to see the Brahminy Starling had taken up roost only 10 feet from the car! I quickly grabbed my camera but the second I rolled down the car window for a shot, the birds took to the air.

By then it was 6 PM and getting late. Satisfied, and brimming with joy, I picked up my kids from the beach and drove back to Phuket and celebrate my first two lifers of the year with a dinner at Sizzlers!

Altogether there were 47 species in one hour and two lifers. -God is good!

A birding trip to three key birding sites in Phang Nga on the 11th netted over 100 species, making it an exceptionally great birding day record-wise. Any time a person reaches the 100-species plataeu in a single day, you can bet they saw some noteworthy species.

On the 11th Steve Potter, a visiting birder from Australia and I, visited Sri Phang Nga National Park, Laem Pakarang and Thai Muang Golf Course. Doubtless if we had more time we would have tried other places but there are only so many hours in a single day. We did get a fair number of specialties such as Nordmanns Greenshank, Chinese Egret, Grey Tailed Tattler, Lesser Fish Eagle. Orange breasted Green Pigeon, Golden Crested Myna and Long billed Spiderhunter.

Enclosed is the trip report, available as a PDF document.

Thousands of raptors are moving through the province this month, at astonishing rates. So far no vultures have come through, but a few Aquila eagles (Greater Spotted) have come through, according to Dr. Robert DeCandino, a visiting professor from New York who is monitoring the migration at Radar Hill.

My contribution is to watch for raptor movement in Phuket, and so far it’s been quite … dull. No movements have been seen, although the small groups I’ve encountered give credence that the birds are passing through. Four Japanese Sparrowhawk, tailed by a pair of Booted Eagle were spotted near Baan Nam Kem, Phang Nga on the 18th, while three Grey Faced Buzzards were seen over open fields north of British International School, Sapam, on the afternoon of the 23rd.

Two more Japanese Sparrowhawk were sighted in the Muang Chao Fah area on the 27th but other than that, all raptor sightings have been Brahminy Kites or White belled Sea Eagle, both of which are resident.

15 Grey faced Buzzards were seen circling over the municipal park in Phuket town on the 29th and later headed off in a northeastern direction.

Blue Tailed Bee Eater has arrived in small numbers throughout the island, and so far no major migration group has been encountered. Three are regulars in a field near my home.

Last year the migration hit Phuket in November, so we’re anticipating that the time will be coming soon. According to data from the past two years, the migration should come from the northwest, come over Muang Chao Fah and head off in the direction of Khao Khat and Laem Panwa before heading off over the sea enroute (presumably?) towards Phi Phi and Krabi.

Khao Khat seems to be the best place to observe the migration and hopefully we’ll be able to cash in on it this year.

The roosting sites for the last two years have been Muang Chao Fah, Bang Waad Dam, (2008) and Klong Mudong (2007), which seem to be the prime places to keep an eye on when the birds come through.

-By Ian Dugdale

We had heard that the following had been seen on the island:

White-bellied Woodpecker: Of the five or so residents we spoke to, only one had thought he had seen them at the southern end of the island. We did not see any.

Grey-headed Fish-Eagle: One adult seen in the central part of the island, an area of shallow ponds, flooded grassland and open forest.

Lesser Adjutant: Local knowledge is that there are 100 birds on the island but during the wet season they stay in the landward side of the mangroves in an inaccessible area. In the dry season (Jan-Apr) they frequent the central open areas and are easily seen. We did not see any.

Cinnamon-headed Green-Pigeon: A few locals thought they had seen them but no reliable information. We did not see any.

Pale-capped Pigeon: No local information. We did not see any.

Birding in the open areas was very enjoyable and provides a nice contrast to the usual forest birding in Southern Thailand. The island is beautiful and well looked after by the locals. Very little of the island has been cultivated and we saw no signs of hunting. Apparently some mainlanders do come over to hunt but the locals stop it when they can. We also learnt that the government wants to make it a National Park but the locals are against it because their livelihood depends on fishing.

Our conclusion was that it is an excellent place to visit for one or two days as part of a birding trip in Southern Thailand.

Following is the list of birds we saw between 17/10 and 20/10.

Lesser Whistling-duck, Barred Buttonquail, Grey-capped Pygmy Woodpecker, Common Goldenback, Rufous Woodpecker, Coppersmith Barbet, Oriental Pied Hornbill, Eurasian Hoopoe, Burmese Roller, Oriental Dollarbird, Common Kingfisher, White-throated Kingfisher, Black-capped Kingfisher, Blue-tailed Bee-eater, Chestnut-headed Bee-eater, Indian Cuckoo, Himalayan Cuckoo, Greater Coucal, Lesser Coucal, Vernal Hanging Parrot, Red-breasted Parakeet, Germain’s Swiftlet, Grey-rumped Treeswift, Brown Hawk-owl (heard only), Great Eared Nightjar, Red Turtle Dove, Zebra Dove, Pink-necked Green-pigeon, Spotted Dove, Slaty-breasted Rail, Pin-tailed Snipe, Common Sandpiper, Pacific Golden-plover, Red-wattled Lapwing, Crested Honey Buzzard, White-bellied Sea-eagle, Brahminy Kite, Grey-headed Fish Eagle, Crested Serpent-eagle, Peregrine Falcon, Common Kestrel, Little Grebe, Little Egret, Purple Heron, Chinese Pond-heron, Striated Heron, Cinnamon Bittern, Brown Shrike, Large-billed Crow, Black-naped Oriole, Lesser Cuckooshrike, Black Drongo, Ashy Drongo, Common Iora , Greater Racket-tailed Drongo, Dark-sided Flycatcher, Asian Brown Flycatcher, Oriental Magpie Robin, Common Myna, Common Hill Myna, Barn Swallow, Pacific Swallow, Black-headed Bulbul, Yellow-vented Bulbul, Olive-winged Bulbul, Streak-eared Bulbul, Dark-necked Tailorbird, White-chested Babbler (heard only), Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker, Brown-throated Sunbird, Van Hasselt’s Sunbird, Olive-backed Sunbird, Eurasian Tree Sparrow, Eastern Yellow Wagtail, Grey Wagtail, Forest Wagtail, Paddyfield Pipit, White-rumped Munia.

Total species seen: 78 species

Two documents were sent to me from Dr. Robert DiCandido, a professor in New York who has been involved with the Chumporn Raptor Festival for a number of years, along with Mr. Chukiat Nulsiri and Mr. Chaiyan Kasorndokbua, the two Thai coordinators of the annual event. The first is a document taken from this years edition of Forktail describing the Spring 2008 migration, and the second documents the migration from December last year.

The Chumporn Birding Club has been making waves in the local birding front for quite some time now, from migrating raptors to wintering starlings in the municipal football stadium. Not only that, but their ongoing efforts to educate the locals and youth regarding this topic is worth commenting on.

Dr. Robert has requested if any birders happen to see any movements of raptors or bee eaters during this period, to please report their findings to the Chumporn Birding Club or to him so that they can study the movement pattern of these birds. Phuket does experience at least one afternoon of mass raptor migration at least once a year and so far the event has been poorly documented.

Those interested should contact Dr. Robert about joining in on the raptor festival on Radar Hill (Promsri Hill) as it looks to be an exciting and enjoyable event for birders.

Dr. Robert can be reached at this address: rdcny@earthlink.net