Another month has come and gone; boy does time fly!

A Black headed Ibis was seen at Thai Muang Golf Course on the 1st by Ian Dugdale, Dave Sergeant and Games, a local guide. The following day a second bird was found at the same site, along with two River Lapwing, a single White Faced Plover and four Malaysian Plover. The full report can be read here.

A Lesser Adjutant Stork and Pied Harrier were seen on Koh Pratong by Ian, Dave and Games on the 2nd.

Two Grey headed Buzzards were seen in flight over Muang Chao Fah on the afternoon of the 17th. An Osprey was seen in flight over Chalermprakiat (Suan Lor 9) Park on the 23rd. On the 24th three Black Baza were seen heading northwards over the Heroines’ Monument.

A Purple Heron and a single Indian Pond Heron in breeding dress was seen at Surat Thani Airport on the 23rd. On the way back, a stopover in Phang Nga Bay revealed four Mangrove Pitta and a Yellow eared Spiderhunter. The report can be seen here.

Nine Greater Crested Tern were seen in Koh Kaeo Bay near the Boat Lagoon. Two large gulls, too far away to be identified, were seen in Phang Nga Bay near Koh Lawa Yai. Five Whiskered Tern and a single Little Tern were seen feeding in the sea near Ao Por harbor. All these records from the 27th of February.

A Blue Rock Thrush was seen flying back and forth with food in its beak, assumed to be feeding a brood of nestlings on James Bond Island on the 28th.

Peregrine Falcon were seen at Rawai (8th), Muang Chao Fah (12th), Suan Chalermprakiat (25th) and Kathu (27th), an awful lot of times for a single month, making me wonder if perhaps they’ll become more common in the days to come.

Other winter visitors still around include Little Cormorant (26th), Brown Shrike (25th), Arctic Warbler (28th), Dark Sided Flycatcher (28th) and Forest Wagtail (28th).

Updates to the site include reviews of Kaeng Krachan National Park, the Krabi Mangrove Walkway and Wat Thum Seua in Krabi province.

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.

The new year started off well on the birding front, even though for most people, 2010 was rocky from the onset.

A pair of Barhminy Starling were seen at Thai Muang Golf Course on the evening of the 9th, along with White shouldered, Chestnut cheeked, Purple backed and Rosy Starling. On the 12th a White bellied Sea Eagle was seen in flight over the fresh market near the Kings Park and on the following day a Black Kite was spotted near the Recycle Center at Sapan Hin. Three Crested Honey Buzzards were seen hovering around Muang Chao Fah near the Honda showroom on the 14th and on the 17th a single Eyebrowed Thrush was seen at the Kings Park around noon, braving the strong winds as it was flushed from a thicket. Other birds seen included White shouldered and Purple backed Starling, Indian Roller, and Black naped Oriole.

The Reddish Scops Owl showed briefly in front of my house for less than ten minutes after a heavy rain on the night of the 6th.

Two pairs of Yellow Vented Bulbul built nests near the front entrance of the house and our of four eggs, three have hatched and are now being fed by the parents. They will probably be flying by the second week of February. Two young Spotted Doves also were raised in the mango tree in front of the house, but only one lived to take to the skies as the other was killed by my dog, Fido.

A Chinese Goshawk was seen near Central Department store on the evening of the 24th and a Japanese Sparrowhawk was seen there on the evening of the 31st.

A trip to Sri Phang Nga on the 29th revealed a few treats. Nesting Great Hornbill was reported by the rangers although we did not have time to make the trek to visit the nest. Also further up the mountain was a nesting pair of Helmeted Hornbill. An Emerald Cuckoo and Hairy backed Bulbul were highlights of the trip and the large number of fruiting trees proves this site is worth a visit during this time of plenty.

A single Chinese Egret was seen at Laem Pakarang on the same day.

A Steppe Buzzard was seen at Laem Mum Nai on the 31st.

Special thanks to Ian Dugdale for his tips on the starlings at Thai Muang.

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!

December was a very busy time for me, with a large number of school projects and traveling, which left little time for birding. However, what I did get what satisfying.

Two Eurasian Kestrel were seen hunting for swiftlets near the Honda showroom on Chao Fah road on the evening of the 12th. On the same evening a Common Buzzard was seen in the vicinity, displaying its characteristic ability to hover while in search of food.

Highlights from a trip to Phang Nga on the 11th included three Lesser Fish Eagles, a pair of Golden Crested Mynas and a male Mugimaki Flycatcher from Sri Phang Nga National Park. A Chinese Egret, a Grey Tailed Tattler and a Nordman’s Greenshank were found at Laem Pakarang and some 200 Orange Breasted Green Pigeons were seen at Thai Muang Golf course in the afternoon. All this and more can be found in the report.

A Great Hornbill was seen in flight over Sirinat National Park Northern Sector near Sarasin bridge in Phuket on the early morning of the 22nd. Its origins are unknown and how it came to the northern part of the island remains a mystery.

Black necked Grebe was present at Beung Boraphet since the 22nd of December, but mysteriously disappeared on the 28th, the day I went out to find it.

Eight Oriental Darter and an Osprey highlighted the trip to Beung Boraphet on the 27th, while a trip to the Chai Nat Bird Park on the same day revealed a large colony of some seven pairs of nesting Painted Stork. The colony no doubt is partly comprised of birds which escaped from the aviary, meaning that this feral population may soon become a thriving colony, giving new life to this uncommon and oft persecuted species. To read the entire report, click here.

A Western Marsh Harrier and a Black Thighed Falconet were seen flying together in the rice fields near Tesco Lotus Singburi on the 23rd.

The most exciting record of the month comes from Ian Dugdale who reported a sighting of a Chestnut cheeked Starling and a Rosy Starling in the presence of a group of Chestnut tailed Starlings at Thai Muang Golf Course in Phang Nga on the 28th.

Happy New Year everyone!

A walk in Chalermprakiat Park on the 12th uncovered a trove of migrants such as Purple backed Starling, Red throated and Asian Brown Flycatcher and Blue tailed Bee Eater. A flock of Chestnut tailed Starling were spotted near Talang on the 14th and one later showed up in a cage for sale at Chatuchak market on the 22nd.

Six Ashy Woodswallow were spotted in Chalermprakiat Park in the afternoon of the 23rd, roosting on electric lines during a very windy day. This marks the second time they have been spotted in Phuket, the first being in Laem Promthep last year by Ian Dugdale. On the same day 3 House Crow was seen in the park mixed in with a flock of some 200 Large billed Crows. Barn Owl was spotted in flight over Muang Chao Fah road late on the night of the 27th. A Peregrine Falcon was seen hunting swifts over Phuket town on the 29th.

Blue tailed Bee Eaters on migration were constant throughout the month with the largest flock numbering almost 40 individuals and seen near Chalong on the 19th. Six Blue throated Bee Eaters were seen roosting on the ground in the afternoon on the 28th on a trail to a waterfall in Muang Chao Fah.

Two Changeable Hawk Eagles were spotted over Muang Chao Fah on the 7th in the company of a Crested Honey Buzzard. (Thanks to Mr. Chaiyan and Dr. Phil for their help on identifying the birds).

With the raptor migration heading towards Phuket, I’ve decided to open a page dedicated to reporting the latest news on what’s coming through. –If you have anything to contribute, please feel free to send them in and we’ll post it, along with your name and the location where the sighting took place.

Note: Unless the report is followed by a name, all sightings were recorded by Ike Suriwong.

- 2/11: A large group of raptors moved through in a southwesterly direction, with over 80+ individuals counted. Of the birds seen, those identified included Black Baza (28), Japanese Sparrowhawk (22), Grey faced Buzzard (12), Oriental Honey Buzzard (7) and Booted Eagle (3). A possible juvenile Imperial Eagle was also spotted trailing the group. Many birds were too high to be identified with a normal 8×40 pair of bins, so have patience with me.
Thrown in for good measure was a single White bellied Sea Eagle and six Brahminy Kite. All sightings were recorded from Muang Chao Fah.
- 3/11: Black Baza (4) and Grey Faced Buzzard (2) were seen catching an updraft around 10 AM near Bang Waad Dam.
- 4/11: A single Black Baza flew over Muang Chao Fah around 8 AM. Another one was seen in the evening over Central Festival around 5 PM.
- 7/11: An Oriental Honey Buzzard was seen over Muang Chao Fah around 6 PM. Three Japanese Sparrowhawk were seen heading northeast a few minutes later.
- 8/11: Eight Grey Faced Buzzards were seen over Laem Gaa, Rawai, around 5 PM, and later a mixed flock of 14 Black Baza, 12 Japanese Sparrowhawk and a few larger unidentified raptors (Oriental Honey Buzzard perhaps?) were seen gathering over Rawai beach. Thrown in for good measure were two White bellied Sea Eagle, three Brahminy Kite and a single Eurasian Kestrel.
- 10/11: Five Black Baza and two Chinese Sparrowhawk were spotted near Chalong in the evening.
- 11/11: Seven Oriental Honey Buzzards were seen around 3 PM over the Muang Chao Fah area, not in a group but scattered throughout the area.
- 13/11: The first positive ID of a Common Buzzard for the winter was recorded near Sapam at 4 PM.
- 15/11: Four Black Baza were seen in flight over Laem Panwa near the deep sea port in the late afternoon.
- 16/11: A Crested Goshawk stirred up a flock of 400+ Rock Dove which took to the skies and eventually chased off the would-be predator, along with three Brahminy Kite and a single Japanese Sparrowhawk.

Major news for the month would have to be the raptors moving through the island, all of which can be read in this report posted a few days ago. I’ll repost it here for good measure:

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.

The first Tiger Shrike of the year was seen on the 18th near the airport. Blue tailed and Blue throated Bee Eaters have made their presence known in Phuket and are now regulars in many open-country sites.

No flycatchers have been reported yet.

A White bellied Sea Eagle was seen circling around Phuket town, coming from the direction of Bang Waad Dam (29th) and a Changeable Hawk-Eagle was seen over Muang Chao Fah (31st) during a routine check for migrating raptors. Two Barn Owls were seen near Thai Naan restaurant (22nd) and a Chestnut tailed Starling was found on sale in a local market, reportedly trapped in the Talang area by a local farmer (27th).

The raptor migration in Chumporn seems to be going very well this year.

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.

(Following is a report from Ian Dugdale and Games (a Thai guide) who visited Koh Pratong for three days on a survey trip to test the potential of the site. Koh Pratong has gotten rave reviews from many birders in Bangkok who have spent countless hours exploring this still untamed wilderness island. The island is still mired in a legal battle between the RFD (Royal Forestry Department) and local villagers who insist they want to keep the land from becoming a National Park. Many depend on fishing for their livelihood and declaring it a national park will put stipulations on the future of their income.)

-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

I am a happy soul!

A trip down to Fortune Town in Rachada to visit an old friend seemed pretty mundane with little or no camera hardware available at 2nd hand prices. Seems like Canon is having a heyday in Thailand as more and more people switch from point-and-shoot cameras to digital SLRs. The youth of Bangkok are not settling for the lazy road in photography and I am happy to see that. Even petite teenage girls can be seen whipping out their Canon 40Ds armed with 70-200 “white” lenses. –Wow.

All that to say, nothing stays put on the second hand market for long. It takes a few days (sometimes only a few hours) before the item is snatched up by a budget-conscience student or teenager. So my hopes of finding a long range telephoto at a friendly price were pretty dead in the water.

Or so I thought.

One shop had the very budget friendly Tokina 80-400 lens which, despite its record for being the smallest telephoto zoom available on the market, didn’t quite appeal to my tastes or the fact that it had no fast aperture, no IS and no fast focusing capabilities. –Looked like a big NO for many people too, as the retailer told me no one had even asked about it in the eight months he has had it on display.

An obscure camera shop wedged between a row of computer shops caught my attention with what seemed to be a 70-200 Sigma going for 24,900 baht. On inspection, it turned out to be a 100-300 F4 Sigma. Since I was not familiar with the lens, I took a few test shots and headed home to check out the quality.

After some research I found I may have stumbled upon a deal, so the next day, I went back, cashed in my last reserve of dollars and bought myself my first real telephoto lens. –Interestingly, I got there only a few minutes before another would-be customer walked in, looking for the same deal.

After a few days of working with the lens, I’ve learned that this lens is not easy to deal with (like almost any other tele lens) and requires a bit of a learning curve. Lack of IS means it demands a lot of light, or a stable tripod. The weight is somewhat of an issue, but has not proven to be problematic for me. –Photo quality? You decide for yourself:

All photos are taken handheld and none were fixed up; these are straight, fresh out of the camera.

First things first; a little cropping would be nice, and so would a little more range. 1.4 converter is needed, check.

I think it could use some sharpening and perhaps the lens could be checked for sharpness once (standard procedure for all lenses) but I think it’s got a lot of great potential. It’s a fraction of the price of a 100-400 Canon and takes the TC very well (giving it a maximum range of 470mm) so there are a lot of upsides. -Would I have been happier with the 100-400 Canon? -Sure! –But would I have been happy with the bank account afterwards? –Definitely NOT!

Nothing beats a Canon L lens in my book but if one is price conscience, I think this is a very good deal. I doubt there will be another available at this price (the owner was getting rid of all his lenses) and with a genuine warranty, so I am very thankful that God led me to this good deal. Perhaps in the future I’ll be posting more of my own photos.

A trip to Koh Kor Kao (business, not birds) on the eastern tip of Baan Nam Kem showed the island, though targeted for future business endeavors, is still in pristine condition and well stocked with plenty of birds and other animal life.

Koh Kor Khao is situation south of Koh Pratong, an island gazetted for National Park status but currently mired in legal disputes due to protests by the locals living there. While Koh Pratong is well known by many birders as one of the only places in the south which is home to such rare species as Lesser Adjutant, White bellied Woodpecker, Cinamon capped Pigeon and Grey headed Fish Eagle, Koh Kor Khao is seldom visited and still relatively unknown. Both are largely deserted with little infrastructure to speak of. The difference between the two is that Koh Kor Kao has been targeted by major hotels as the new “Phuket”, with talk of an airport being constructed on the north end, where a former WWII Japanese runway was cleared from the forest.

I did not have a lot of time to look for birds but from the terrain and available habitat, it looks like there could be a good number of birds here. Back in 2002 I was able to do some birding on the north end of the island and it proved to be very good for many species of forest and open-country birds. The beach was also uninhabited, making good feeding sites for waders, which flock in to feed during low tide. Marshlands are a familiar sight in the island and are home to a large number of waders, egrets and herons. I wouldn’t be surprised of from time to time one could find the Lesser Adjutant here as well.

King Cobra as seen crossing the road and a Water Monitor was spotted sunning itself on the road as we drove by. Both prove there are plenty of other animals about on the island.

Off on the horizon we spotted a large stretch of boulders and rocks which form a natural boundary, protecting the shores from the strong tidal currents. These islands were formed during the tsunami of 2004 and may be prime resting spots for ocean-going birds, much like the famous sand spit in Laem Pak Bia on the inner gulf.

Again, there is much to be explored around here, an hopefully one day someone (or I) will find the time to seriously assess the potential here.

Two adult Barn Owls with two young were seen around Kajonkiat Primary School on Chao Fah Road on the evening of the 12th. A juvenile White bellied Sea Eagle was seen in flight over Chao Fah City project on the 25th and is believed to be offspring from the pair nesting at Bang Wad lake.

The first Brown Shrikes of the year were recorded from Koh Yao Noi on the 24th and three more were seen near British International School on the afternoon of the same day, along with the year’s first Grey Headed Lapwing.

A flock of wintering Eurasian Curlews was seen in Sapam on the 6th along with plenty of other waders such as Ruddy Turnstone, Great and Lesser Sand Plovers, Common Redshank, Black winged Stilts and a single Terek Sandpiper.

More wintering records can be seen in the posted report of the trip to Koh Yao.

August was a month drenched in the rains of the monsoon and little birding was done, although many attempts were made to get out in the field.

A beach trip to Nai Yang with the kids produced a pair of Alexandrine Parakeets, assumed to be a feral population. The pair were seen in the vicinity of the beach forest on the 12th and were not seen again on later trips to the same area. On Lesser Frigatebird was seen flying over the beach in the late evening of the same day.

Two more wintering wagtails were seen this month, the first sighting for the Forest Wagtail and Yellow Wagtails this year were recorded on the 4th and 9th respectively, both around Talang area.

A trip to Ao Maprao on the 18th was eventful, with the winters’ first Ashy Drongo showing well. A small flock of Ashy Minivet also filtered through the trees, numbering only three or four birds.

The first Common Kingfisher of the year arrived near my home on the morning of the 27th.

The migrant season is coming up soon, and what better way to prepare than to read up on what’s been coming through in the past years.

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