Jewels of the South - 2010 Trip Report

This was the first trip organized and marketed as a dual venture between Birding EcoTours of South Africa and PaddleAsia (Thailandbirding) of Thailand. The tour was led by Games Punjapa, one of South Thailand’s best bird guides.

The itinerary comprised mainly of forest birding, with a boat trip every few days to provide a change of habitat and scenery. All birding was to be done in the Southern provinces of Phuket, Phang Nga, Surat Thani, Nakhon Sri Thammarat and Krabi.

Only one guest, George Ridout, signed up for the tour and at his request the trip was shortened by one day to eleven days. Ian Dugdale, a local birder and photographer joined the tour in an unofficial capacity. All photos by Ian Dugdale.

Day 1

Disaster! George called up to say he was stuck in Japan due to a plane cancellation. We would have to start a day late.

So as not to re-book everything, the itinerary was changed slightly for the first few days. Phuket was cut out completely and the visits to Sri Phang Nga and Ton Pariwat moved.

Day 2 - Thai Muang Golf Course and Sri Phang Nga National Park

After a successful airport pick-up we whisked George straight out to the abandoned Golf Course at Thai Muang. He was very happy to be birding at last after a very long journey from California.

Firstly we headed into the marsh area where we picked up a hat-trick of Lapwings in the first fifteen minutes, Grey-headed Lapwing, Red-wattled Lapwing and River Lapwing. Egrets were thin on the ground with only Eastern Cattle Egrets feeding near the buffalos. We were surprised to see a few Oriental Pratincoles wheeling about above us as we’d not seen them there before.

Next we took a walk around the golf course. Both Blue-tailed Bee-eaters and Chestnut-headed Bee-eaters were active. Pin-tailed Snipe were flushed at every turn and Watercock, Pheasant-tailed Jacana and a Cinnamon Bittern were seen at the lotus ponds. We walked further into the course to see which of the seven recently spotted species of Starlings were around. After checking all the flowering trees we’d managed to see Chestnut-tailed Starling, Rosy Starling and Philippine Glossy Starling. A tree full of Orange-breasted Green Pigeons was also found. Circling overhead were Brahminy Kites, a Grey-faced Buzzard and a Black-winged Kite.

It was now the middle of the day and we were overheating so we decided to move on. After making a short stop in Thai Muang town to have a look at the Black-nest Swiftlets we headed North. George had made it clear he wasn’t keen on shore birds so we gave Laem Pakarang a miss. During a fuel stop we called a Golden-bellied Gerygone out of a rubber plantation.

We only had a couple of hours at Sri Phang Nga National Park before dark and George was feeling the effects of a journey across many time zones so we just walked the main track which produced a Chestnut-breasted Malkoha and a variety of Bulbuls and Spiderhunters. Whiskered Treeswifts were hawking above the stream and a White-rumped Shama provided the music. Games found a huddle of Lesser Short-nosed Fruit Bats (pictured above) under a banana leaf.

On our way back to the hotel in Khao Lak we saw many Large-tailed Nightjars feeding off the clouds of flying ants.

Day 3 – Similan Islands

The Similan Islands – After an hour’s ride in a large speedboat we spent the morning snorkelling in the clear waters of the Similans. Snorkeling here is always a joy and as well as the usual reef dwellers we had good looks at rarer fish like the Beaked Leatherjacket and the Picasso Triggerfish.

Our birding here was restricted to a two hour lunch break at island 8. We were first off the boat and headed straight into the campsite to look for Pigeons. A pair of Pied Imperial Pigeons (pictured right) were feeding in a fruiting tree over the pond. In the pond itself three White-breasted Waterhens were walking about in the open.

The distinctive “honk” of White-bellied Sea-Eagle drew our attention to the skies and the bushes were alive with Asian Koels. A Black-bellied Malkoha was also feeding low to the ground. It’s always a treat to visit somewhere where the birds don’t seem to fear you.

After a quick ten minute lunch we were back in the campsite and were rewarded by very close views of the amazing Nicobar Pigeon (pictured right) . This bird showed no fear at all and later wandered around the hundreds of lunching tourists.

When we got back to the mainland we only had an hour of birding time left so we took a stroll around the Similan Islands NP HQ gardens. Black-naped Orioles were socialising in their usual noisy manner, A Black-capped Kingfisher was fishing in the pond and we managed to flush a Yellow Bittern.

A good variety of Flowerpeckers and Sunbirds were also seen. On the way back to the hotel we visited the idyllic beach at Khao Lak National Park to enjoy the sunset.

Day 4 – Ton Pariwat Wildlife Sanctuary and Khao Sok Reservoir

The plan today was to bird Ton Pariwat Wildlife Sanctuary in the morning on foot and then to drive up to Khao Sok to take a longtail boat out on the reservoir to look for raptors and hornbills.

Ton Pariwat always kicks off at around 7am as the sun moves down the hillside and onto the road so we got there in good time and waited for the party to begin. First to arrive was a Large Woodshrike closely followed by a Dark-sided Flycatcher and a Verditer Flycatcher. Vernal Hanging Parrots called as they flew over and a stunning Scaly-breasted Bulbul (pictured right) made an appearance.

At this time of year the trees lining the road are always full of bulbuls. We counted eight species. By now the local babblers were beginning to call. Both Grey-throated Babblers and Pin-striped Tit Babblers came in but only gave brief views.

There had been little rain for over a month so the usual bird bath had opened up early and as well as the bulbuls we had some great looks at Everett’s White-eye (pictured right). We also had our first of many sightings of the beautiful Crimson Sunbird.

At 9 am, as usual, the raptors started finding thermals and Crested Serpent-Eagles and a lone Wallace’s Hawk-Eagle soared overhead.

We now had a two hour drive North to Khao Sok where we boarded a boat to take us out to the Western reaches of the reservoir where the water is littered with the snags of dead trees. After a thorough soaking on the way out the weather cleared and it seemed every group of trees hosted a perching raptor. We spent an hour of so “boat scoping” (a tricky process on a moving boat) them to see what was around before cruising the shoreline looking for a fruiting tree in the hope of finding some hornbills feeding. We had no luck and only saw Oriental Pied Hornbill. We had in the meantime seen many Eurasian Ospreys, a few Lesser Fish-Eagles and one Grey-headed Fish-Eagle. We also found a pair of Black Bazas drying off in a tree and a pair of Banded Woodpeckers.

This would be a great boat trip even without the birds. The scenery is just amazing and everyone felt very elated on the way to the resort at Khao Sok.

Day 5 – Khao Sok National Park and Khao Luang Krung Ching National Park

We spent the early morning at Khao Sok National Park river section and along the main trail.

A Puff-throated Babbler (pictured right) walked right past us in the resort garden and Games took some good photos.

A Black-capped Babbler was heard at the start of the trail and after almost giving up on it, it finally showed itself very nicely.

We’d had a tip that a Rufous-Collared Kingfisher (pcitured right) had been seen in the area so we tried a speculative call and were amazed to hear an immediate response followed by a fly-by. We were all very excited as this was a lifer for all of us. The bird kept responding by flying straight past us and into the thick forest where we couldn’t see it. We changed tack and headed into the forest ourselves to look for it. After five minutes of peering into the gloom we found a female sitting in the open. We got the scope on it and took our time enjoying the view. What a bird. The male was seen briefly but was very obscured.

No sooner had we moved on than we heard a Banded Kingfisher calling. It too came in and showed well. On our way back to the car a small group of Hairy-backed Bulbuls entertained us. A fruiting tree near the HQ was busy with Yellow-breasted Flowerpeckers.

We now had a long drive to the East coast and into the foothills of the Nakhon Si Thammarat Mountain Range where Khao Luang Krung Ching is located, our home for the next couple of days. We only managed an hour’s birding before rain set in but still managed to see Blyth’s Hawk-Eagle, Rufous-tailed Tailorbird, Raffles’s Malkoha and a perching Black-thighed Falconet eating a cicada.

A Yellow-throated Marten was seen draped over a branch in a high tree.

Day 6 – Khao Luang Krung Ching National Park

We only had one full day at Krung Ching and the plan was to look for the Malaysian Rail-Babbler which is usually found a couple of kilometres into the forest. We started walking the main road into the park but dawn was very misty which made birding difficult. All we could see were silhouettes for the first hour. We did however find a Rufous Piculet, some Lesser Green Leafbirds, and an Asian Fairy Bluebird. As we walked down to the HQ buildings we came across a Wallace’s hawk-Eagle perching in a tree.

When the mist had cleared we moved into the forest. Birding here is done principally with the ears rather than the eyes. We never get a long list on this trail but we do see different birds every time. As we were climbing the hill we heard a Green Broadbill (pcitured right) calling close by. We called back and it came in incredibly close and sat out in the open. A rare thing for this bird. A few metres further on we came across a party of Brown Fulvettas. Although not much to look at we’re always happy to see them. A pair of Maroon Woodpeckers were our next birds. They were tricky to see but Games eventually got one of them in the scope.

We heard the Malaysian Rail-Babbler calling and set up a hide in the forest a little off the trail. As it was a Saturday the trail was busy with people going to the waterfall. After an hour in the hide we gave up as it seemed unlikely the bird would make an appearance with all the commotion nearby. It was late now and the forest was quiet as we made our way out apart from an Eastern Tickell’s Blue Flycatcher singing away in a bamboo thicket.

A late afternoon walk along a quiet road outside the park provided a pleasant change from the forest. This is an area of low intensity fruit farming, a more open habitat with plenty of trees. A Common Emerald Dove was feeding on the road as we arrived. A Dark-throated Oriole was perched in a distant tree, a pair of Great Ioras moved through and some Greater Racket-tail Drongos were flying around. We finally had some good views of a Square-tailed Drongo Cuckoo too.

After an early dinner we went back to the park to look for night birds. Luckily, Games saw a Buffy-fish Owl fly past and noted where it landed so we were able to get the scope onto it.

Day 7 – Khao Luang Krung Ching National Park and Thale Noi National Park

A clear morning made for much easier birding. We started again at the entrance gate where we called out an Abbott’s Babbler. On the walk down to the “bus stop” we didn’t come across any bird waves but did get on to some Green Ioras and a Spectacled Spiderhunter. A Scarlet-rumped Trogon flew over the road and kindly sat in the open for us to appreciate him and a pair of Buff-rumped Woodpeckers flew from tree to tree.

We moved onto the “bus stop” trail and were rewarded with two new sunbirds, Purple-naped Sunbird, and Ruby-cheeked Sunbird. This trail isn’t well maintained at the moment so we turned back after a kilometre or so. A Blue-winged Leafbird made a brief appearance and a flock of Thick-billed Green Pigeons flew by.

We still had an hour or so before we needed to leave so we decided to try our luck with the forktails. Behind the HQ a pair of stunning Chestnut-naped Forktails were feeding in the stream but we failed to see the White-crowned Forktails behind the restaurant. While staking them out we were distracted by a calling Orange-breasted Trogon but it refused to show itself.