-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.

Bengt Legnell, an old-time birding friend from Sweden, came to Thailand with some friends to do some serious birding. After some time in Kaeng Krachan and Pak Talae, they came down to Krabi to try to find the Gurneys Pitta and Large Wren Babbler. Guiding the search would be Games, a local freelance guide who has her own company and also works on occasion with Paddleasia as a birding guide.

We dipped on our two objectives but we were able to find a lot of other very good species. Like they say, “If at first you can’t succeed, try and try again.” I guess that’s why we’ll be heading back there again in the future and hope to find these two once and for all.

The complete report, available in PDF format is found here. To view the document, you will need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your computer. Adobe Acrobat is free and can be downloaded here.

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.

-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 missed the boat by two minutes and had to wait another hour for the next one to leave so I spent the time birding in the mangroves. A Brown winged Kingfisher was heard but not seen. (Bang Rong is one of the few places in Phuket to find this mangrove kingfisher.) A few large waders resembling Great Knot flew upstream, chased off by a pair of dogs scavenging amongst the mudflats in the low tide. Other birds in the area included Brahminy Kite, Little and Intermediate Egret, Little Heron and Common Sandpiper.

A slow cruise down the river out to the open sea produced a pair of Eurasian Curlew, five Black winged Stilts, a flock of Lesser Sand Plovers, Great Egrets and a larger-than-normal Common Kingfisher. Prize of the day was a sighting of this year’s first Chinese Egret in full breeding plumage, eating a eel on the riverbank.

The open seas were calm but not a single bird in sight, perhaps due to the grey skies which threatened to pour rain down at any given moment.

On the island I rushed to the district office to get my paperwork complete as it is really unpredictable as to when they will decide to close for lunch (or how long they’ll be on lunch break for!) so once that was complete I was able to breathe normally again. Behind the district office is a municipal trash landfill which attracts lots of wildlife, notably giant Water Monitors well over five feet in length. Only one was present today, but the presence of 50 or so Crab-eating Macaques had me wary and on my toes. Birding was mediocre although the sighting of a single House Crow amongst the 80+ Large billed cousins was an interesting development, proving that these aggressive birds may be on a course of expansion. Birds seen here included many Common Myna, Little Spiderhunter, Spotted Dove, Barn and Pacific Swallow, Zebra Dove, Yellow vented and Streak eared Bulbul, Yellow and Grey Wagtails and a single Indian Roller. No White vented Mynas were around … perhaps they have not yet made it to Koh Yao Noi?

A walk back to the pier produced Cinnamon Bittern, Common Snipe, White throated and Common Kingfisher, White breasted Waterhen and Little Egret. A Little Heron, blown in by incoming storm, parked itself only a few feet from where we sat in order to escape the rain.

The boat ride back was quiet except for a lone  Short Tailed Shearwater seen gliding low over the water. Its behaviour was very different from that of terns and gulls and it breezed through the waves and rain with little effort and nary a wingbeat.

Back at the pier and off to Laguna where I was able to connect with the usual Cotton Pigmy Goose, Lesser Whistling Duck, Common Moorhen, Little Grebe, Purple Swamphen and Oriental Pratincole.

A short stopover to visit the Openbill colony exposed a loophole being exploited. Around four or five large trucks loaded with soil were filling in a piece of prime wetland which is used by the Openbills. I got out with a camera and binoculars and the minute the drivers saw me, they rushed in to explain the situation. They told me they were told (by their superiors at a construction site nearby) to dump the excess soil here. No construction was being done here (thank God) but part of the area was due to be covered by dirt over three feet deep. Again they reiterated it was not “their fault.” –What did I look like, the Land Official from the local municipal office?

In a way, this is good news and bad news. While it’s good they are not planning on constructing anything in a prime piece of wetland, it is unnerving to see foremen taking advantage of the “no construction on wetlands” rule by using the excuse that they only plan to dispose of their excess dirt. Three trucks aren’t bad but do that for three months and you won’t have much wetland left to speak of. If it keeps going on, the area will cease to be a wetland as once it has been covered, someone will then be able to claim the land and use it for commercial purposes. -A sneaky way to gain more income.

On the drive back into town I saw a Purple Heron in flight and decided to see where it was heading. A turn down a narrow road took me into a land I never knew existed, a part of Phuket still lush with fields and ponds. In a field with grazing cattle I found a few Common Snipe, Richards and Paddyfield Pipit, White throated Kingfisher, Gray Headed Lapwing, Greater Coucal, Cattle Egret, and four Brown Shrike.

A single Black Kite was seen in flight over Premium Outlet store on the bypass road on the way back into town to cap and eventful and exhausting day.

Our first stop was the Chinese Egret Stakeout (otherwise known as the Phuket Future Plan Estate) where I was hoping to get better looks at the Mangrove Whistler. Well, it was a Sunday, so you can imagine was as going on there on a Sunday. –Too many people, all making ruckus and scaring off the birds. No woodpeckers were seen and the favorite hangout pond for the Purple and Grey Herons (and perhaps even the Great billed with persistence) was now being filled on one end. No herons there. The Mangrove Whistler stakeout had a group of 40 teenagers doing something (suspicious?) in the area, so again nothing there.

Highlight of the area would have to be Drongo Cuckoo, although even that is not something too special in itself. Other birds seen included Lesser Whistling Duck, Little Grebe, Brahminy Kite, Collared and White throated Kingfisher, Little Heron and an assortment of barbets.

Altogether, there were 17 species seen. -Terrible.

Next we headed off to the golf course, a 30 minute drive away. I had to exchange my ID card to get in, and thinking that the heightened security meant less intruders in the area, we headed for the ponds hoping for a feast of good birding.

WRONG!

The place looked like someone had called in a fishing competition and the fishermen had all shown up with their cows. The place was packed with cows and fishermen. What a bummer. Despite that, I was able to find Black Bittern, Paddyfeild Pipit, Indian Roller, Vernal Hanging Parrot, Red wattled Lapwing, Greenish Iora and a few other species. It was disappointing but in a way I enjoyed the experience. For one, going birding when no migrants are around has a very different feel than birding during the winter months. It somehow feels like half the birds that should have been there weren’t.

Nevertheless, it was a good experience. -18 species seen at Thai Muang.

Around 6 we took the kids to the beach where they were able to play and swim for 45 minutes. My usual spot is a stretch of beach just within the national park boundaries, as they allow visitors to use the facilities (showers, to be precise). I went to the HQ to ask about the restaurant and was blessed with a sighting of Greater Racket tailed Drongo up close (missing the crest) and a group of three Hill Mynas in the tree tops. Further down the dirt road in another tree were three Green Imperial Pigeons. Not too bad!

A majestic White Bellied Sea Eagle flew overhead on the way home.

I would have done more birding but I had to keep my promise to go swimming with my boys. There will be other days in the future when I will be free to enjoy my personal interests, but for now my family must come first.

All in all, it was a rather good day and I hope to start making a habit of getting out at least once a week.

Total species seen: 39 species.

It took almost a year to get back to this wonderful place. A few months back a Thai photographer had located a very rare Malaysian Rail Babbler and photographed it. I followed the developments on Thai websites and simply felt that I ‘had to go’. For years I have wanted to see this bird but the unrest in the deep South has made it impossible to visit Hala Bala, the preferred site for the bird.

A friend of mine, Alex Vargas, joined me for this stint and we set out in pursue of the Babbler.

Other target birds for me was Diard’s and Cinnamon-rumped Trogon, Wallace’s Hawk Eagle, Maroon-breasted Flycatcher and Javan Frogmouth.

We managed to squeeze in our trip right in between Thai holidays. Upon arrival we were informed that no one had tried for the Babbler that day as they felt the bird needed a rest.

The next day we set up our blind and waited. A couple of rangers and Mr Narong who found the bird set out along the trail to lure the bird towards our spot. They used playback of its long drawn out call. After hours of searching and moving the birds towards the blind it finally came. However it refused to show. Instead we had to wait till the next day when the same procedure had to take place again. This time they found the bird a lot closer and it didn’t take that long for it to come around. It was decided not to use flash as the bird is very skittish. It was dark and difficult to get a good shot but at least I did get a few. We watched it come and go for a couple of hours and gave space to others on the narrow trail.

-A pair of Wallace’s Hawk Eagles were nesting high on a branch and gave distant views.

Diard’s Trogons kept calling and showed on all 3 days. -Wonderful to catch up with this bird.

Javan Frogmouth had abandoned its nest after 10 days of incubating the eggs. (it was photographed extensively)

A surprise Green-backed Flycatcher (split from Narcissus) gave me my 4th lifer of the trip and 745 for my Thai list.

Some other noteworthy birds encountered:

Banded Pitta
Orange-headed Trogon
Scarlet-rumped Trogon
White-crowned Forktail
Banded Kingfisher
Blue-eared Kingfisher
Rufous-winged Flycatcher
Buffy Fish Owl
Brown Wood Owl
Short-tailed Babbler
Ferruginous Babbler
Brown Barbet
Green Broadbill

Today was special as I managed to call out a Blue winged Pitta (using the call of a Mangrove Pitta) in the forest on the foothills near the bike trail. This was my first migrant Blue winged Pitta for the year! A babbler of some sort was also calling but not seen.

Three migrants were still present: Black Drongo, Brown Shrike and Asian Brown Flycatcher.

Birds seen today included Olive backed Sunbird, Brown throated Sunbird, Common Myna, White Vented Myna, Dollarbird, Asian Koel, Large Hawk Cuckoo, Blue tailed Bee Eater, Chestnut capped Bee Eater, Yellow Bittern, Little Egret, Chinese Pond Heron, Lesser Racket-tailed Drongo, Eurasian Tree Sparrow, Plain backed Sparrow, Brahminy Kite, Yellow Vented Bulbul, Streak eared Bulbul, Stripe throated Bulbul, Black headed Bulbul, Spotted Dove, Zebra Dove, Scaly breasted Munia, Glossy Starling, Scarlet backed Flowerpecker, Large billed Crow and Common Iora.

The search for Reddish Scops Owl continues. It was heard once last month but not seen.

After that we headed off to the Phuket Future Plan estate near the airport, where we did some noon birding. We recorded 42 species in the heat of the day, something quite spectacular for a hot and humid day as that. The uniqueness of the area meant that we were able to get marsh, mangrove, beach forest, beach and open country birds all in one. A flooded forest area turned swamp was a prime attraction for many birds and held a few surprises.

Specials for the day included Stork billed Kingfisher in the swampy areas and three Mangrove Whistler in the mangroves.

Birds seen included Little Cormorant, Little Heron, Pacific reef Egret, Little, Intermediate and Great Egret, Lesser Sand Plover, Whimbrel, Hoopoe, White throated, Collared and Common Kingfisher, Brahminy Kite, Grey capped Woodpecker, Common Flameback, breeding Chinese Pond Heron, Indian Roller, Streak eared Bulbul, Lesser Whistling Duck, Little Grebe, Common Iora and Forest Wagtail.

In the evening, a Lesser Frigatebird was seen about 200 yards off Nai Thorn beach, heading north towards Nai Yang beach.