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!

It took a while but I finally got started!

Peter Ericsson has been encouraging me to get started on bird photography, a hobby which is both expensive and time consuming. For a guy like him, who has grown children, life can afford to smile on his attempts to create time for birding, but for me, a guy with three kids under the age of six, birding is not something which comes at regular intervals. -Not to mention, bird photography also requires decent if not specialized equipment, all of which costs good money. I had to decline for a number of years, but recently things have started to change. First, I was able to save up a small sum of money and second I landed a good deal with a medium range telephoto lens which ended up being a good deal after some minor tweaking with the autofocus.

Doubtless, most professionals or even serious amateur bird photographers will frown at my choice of a Sigma 100-300 F4 paired with a Canon 40D, as the range is a little short and the lens lacks stabilization, not to mention it’s a zoom lens, notorious for being “soft” on the wide end.

First off, I’m not planning to go pro right now, so I think starting off with what I have is a good deal.

-And like all things in life, the results are what matter the most.

So, I’d like you to decide what you think about these photos, taken from Lopburi and Nakorn Sawan on my New Years trip last year (2009). Feel free to post your comments and tips in the comments box below!

Doubtless it will take me a long time to catalogue the number of species that Peter has in his website, but as they say, “The journey of a thousand miles starts with the first step.”

-That was a darn good fortune cookie!

It’s sad to say it has come down to this, but I’m afraid we might just have to admit it.

The number of waders visiting the once bird-rich mudflats has reached an all time low. What was once a popular feeding site for plovers, godwits, redshanks and curlews has now become so polluted and disturbed that now we are left with hardly a handful of birds.

The easiest time to spot waders is during the high tide when the birds are forced into large groups on the banks of the shoreline. The birds at Sapan Hin on this blustery day were very accommodating and allowed me to get within three meters of them, allowing for the photo displayed above, taken with my Canon 105 mm lens.

The photo shows the presence of only three species: Lesser Sand Plover, Red necked Stint and Curlew Sandpiper.

In the distance were a few Eurasian Curlews and the usual Little and Great Egrets.

Missing from the site were the once common Ruddy Turnstone, Common Greenshank, Bar tailed Godwit, Black winged Silts, Common Redshank and Terek Sandpiper.

Beauty. Grace. Precison.

-Yes, Canon lenses are great, but I was actually thinking about the Black headed Gull in the photo.

Flight shots are never easy and this one is a great shot, a real money-maker. Special thanks to Mr. Peter Ericsson for allowing us to use this photograph.

Bang Poo is a great place to find these gulls and people from all over Thailand know of this place as a haven for shorebirds. On occasion an interesting new specimen will show up here as well.

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.