Introduction: While on an official trip to Bangkok, it dawned to me that I can extend my return travel through the weekend as there are no pressing items to address back home in India. This arrangement never worked out earlier as either all my previous trips were around mid-week or something got lined up back home that I can’t leave early or return late. Having had “The Spoon-billed” & “The Nordmann’s” during one of my last trips (See http://www.thaibirding.com/trip_reports/lpb-pakthale-dec2007.htm), I decided it is time to spend time in tropical rain forests. Jainy Kuriakose who did a Thailand tour earlier from India advised Kaeng Krachan NP (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaeng_Krachan_National_Park) for two days and hence I made all the preparations to have a taste of Thai forest birding.
Highlights: Two days of birding in November yielded 120+ species (including ‘calls only’), with highlights as Dusky & Silver-breasted Broadbills, Ratchet-tailed Treepie, White-browed Piculet, Orange-breasted Trogon, Raffles’s Malkoha, Collared Babbler, Banded Kingfisher (Call) & Spectacled Spiderhunter.
Location: Kaeng Krachan National Park, is the largest in Thailand and is situated in SC Tenasserim range (much alike Western Ghats), the crest line of these hills traverse the Thai-Myanmar border. Topographically, the hills are of mid-height (300-1200m), with lush tropical rain forests in the higher reaches. Lower altitudes appear to be secondary forests though there are excellent riparian stretches near the streams and bamboo brakes.
Preparation: There is a lot written about this area in print and internet (http://www.thaibirding.com/locations/west/kk.htm) and many trip reports are available. I based my preparation completely on them – except that there is hardly any report during the winter – hence, understandably – this is a lean season where you cannot expect Pittas or Broadbills. That did not turn me off; this was a filler-trip for me; rather than spending my time birding in Bangalore wetlands, I might as well try some rain forest birding. I created a master list of 100 birds I would like to see, downloaded all their images (OBI etc.) and calls (Xeno-Canto, Avocet etc) – created a 20 page document which I had transmitted to my guide (see later) while the calls were transferred to my cell phone.
Accommodation & Guiding: I easily found accommodation in Baan Maka Birding Lodge (http://www.thaibirding.com/features/banmaka.htm), probably because it was a lean season as there were not many guest around and I got a double room. Accommodation was comfortable though I did not spend too much time there. I arranged a pick up and drop back with them from Bangkok. Through Baan Maka, I arranged a local guide (Mr.Piak) and his vehicle for two days – and all this excludes the park entry fee (THB 200/person/day, THB 30/vehicle/day). Baan Maka would provide an early breakfast (0530hrs) for a quick birding start by 0545hrs while you can order dinner at their place. The park gate opens at 0600hrs and closes at 1830hrs.
Dates & Time: I was picked up from Bangkok at 1330hrs, 15th November 2013 and reached Baan Maka @ 1630hrs. That day I spent roaming around their property until it rained. Next two days was spent completely in the park and I started by return at 1515hrs, 17th November 2013 to reach Suvarnabhoomi airport by 1830hrs.
Weather: This was the low point during my trip; though it was quite dry a week back, it was pouring most of the time I was in the park. Morning of 16th was very wet making birding difficult while the afternoon was misty and gloomy. Morning of 17th also started with light drizzle through-out which cleared out later in the morning for some misty weather, afternoon was dry but cloudy – not a single ray of sunshine hit these forests when I was around (!). In hindsight, this probably meant I lost 10-15 good species.
Birding Log
Day 0: Having slept through most of the time inside Bangkok traffic, I woke up when some of the wetlands appeared on both sides for the road, perhaps more closer to Petchuburi than Bangkok. Some of them had numerous Black-winged Stilts apart from other small waders which I failed to pin down from the speeding car. Other interesting birds for me include several Zebra Doves, Black-collared Mynas, a few White-vented Mynas, Pond Herons possibly all Chinese and a good view of SE Asian ssp. of Scaly-breasted Munia at a fuel station.
Having arrived at Baan Maka, I could do some birding before it started to rain. The small lake near the lodge had Chinese Pond Herons, Cinnamon Bittern, White-breasted Waterhens while the gardens had numerous Taiga Flycatchers, Scarlet-backed Flowerpeckers, Olive-backed Sunbirds, Pin-striped Tit-Babblers, Puff-throated Babblers, Asian Barred Owlet etc. I strolled to the edge of the lodge and saw two Oriental Pied Hornbills and I finished the day watching a White-rumped Shama on its roost and several vocal Grey Nightjar C. jotaka in perch and wing; split from Indian Jungle Nightjar C. indicus of south India.
Day 1: Knowing that I have to leave early on Day 2, I made sure that we visited the highest altitudes around Km30 on this day itself – which meant most of my time would be in thick rain forests. Weather played foul, with torrential rains in the first half of the day drenching myself and my binoculars making birding very difficult. I was contended to ticking the easy lifers rather than any specialities – a flock of Thick-billed Green Pigeons feeding on a fig tree on the way to Ban Krang camp was my first lifer, which I watched from the car itself. Next step further from Ban Krang yielded three Collared Babblers (formerly ssp of White-hooded Babbler), a Great Hornbill while two Ochraceous Bulbul crossed the path without giving any views. Birding was slow, we travelled further from Km30 (Panoen Tong Camp Site) towards the Tortip waterfalls. I got decent views of two Spectacled Spiderhunters, several Buff-vented Bulbuls and a bird wave game one female Great Iora, a few Grey-throated Babblers apart from Buff-breasted Babbler & Brown-cheeked Fulvetta. A group of White-eyes gave sufficient views to ascertain these were not Chestnut-flanked or Oriental as they had greenish crown and no chestnut anywhere and the calls matched Everett’s White-eye (XC151538 in Xeno-Canto). However, this id is tentative as the extent of yellow on the belly was not specifically checked. Finally we reached the end of the road where a few Thai photographers were trying to capture White-handed Gibbons in heavy rains – and the same tree apparently had a Green Broadbill a few days back. This fruiting tree however had more than 40 Blue-eared Barbets and some Blue-throated Barbets and a Great Green Leafbird entered the view – another lifer. We kept checking for the Broadbill and my guide was trying for the Red-bearded Bee-eater (a dip for the entire trip) and finally returned back to Km30 – where we had our lunch. Interestingly, a Yellow-throated Marten came around and gave some good views near the restaurant – while, I added a couple of Flavescent Bulbuls to the list of lifers.
Post lunch, we covered the forests between Km 30 and Km 27 – it was quite misty and gloomy, but the understory birds did not disappoint us. A group of Black-throated Laughingthrushes gave brief views and so did White-browed Scimitar Babblers which were found to be more numerous since then. I got good views of two Yellow-bellied Warblers, a species which I barely managed to see in the morning session due to the rains. Ochraceous, Flavescent and Buff-vented Bulbuls gave fantastic views at multiple places while a Warbler flock had both Sulphur-breasted and Alstorm’s Warbler – this created some confusion initially as I kept seeing the Sulphur-breasted and my guide kept seeing Alstorm’s (which he called out as Plain-tailed) – it was only later, that we both saw the 2nd bird in the flock. Another flock of confiding and singing Black-throated Laughingthrushes came around and they brought the bird of the day – two Ratchet-tailed Treepies, I could see the 2nd one well while the first one disappeared into the canopy quickly. Two Orange-breasted Trogons kept calling but they never came near us. However, a pair of Red-headed Trogons was present in the same site. Three Great Hornbills and two Wreathed Hornbills sat on a high tree – some discussions on the Hornbills being Plain-pouched ensued but finally we concluded that these should be Wreathed itself. One of the bird waves in this patch, usually lead by Brown-cheeked Fulvetta, produced both White-browed & Speckled Piculet apart from several Warblers, Babblers & Drongos. We closed the day by 1800hrs, as we had to exit the main gate by 1830hrs.
Day 2: This day was special since I could manage to add some special birds. We started at 0545hrs, and cleared the gate at 0600. Our first stop was the Great Slaty Woodpecker spot but we were too early and it was raining that we abandoned the search quickly. An Abbott’s Babbler called from the jungle but had to wait till the next stop, a kilometer ahead, where two of them were calling and I managed to see one properly while it was delivering its song. Moving up, we heard the Scaly-breasted Partridges calling but apparently they are difficult to see. Mr. Piak was very particular that there are no birds around Ban Krang and we climbed up to stop near Km 25. This proved to be the best part of the trip – despite rains and mist, we managed to see some goodies during the breaks. A flock of Silver-breasted Broadbills gave me difficult times despite calling continuously from the thickets as I had to scramble through the leech-infested undergrowth to get a glimpse of them – but soon Mr. Piak called me outside to show more birds at a slightly comfortable angle from the road itself. A Raffles’s Malkoha came to us calling and I was position very well to see it appear at the top of a tree and flew to the next tree in a typical Malkoha style. A Moustached Barbet was added and then we saw the bird of the trip – a Dusky Broadbill right out in the open. The experience of seeing this marvellous bird was awesome and I got the same feel when I had seen my first Black Bazas 16 years back ! There was another bird near-by and a 3rd hiding under the tree while a fourth sat on the tree on the other side of the road – finally ‘we’ bid farewell to these birds (rather than them), which shows how much a bird photographer would have loved this moment. A Banded Kingfisher called from the valley below, though we waited for some time, it did not show up. We returned to our vehicle and enroute got a small bird wave with Minivets – which were called out Ashy initially – was more likely Brown-rumped (Swinhoe’s) Minivet. There were no typical Ashy males in the group, atleast four birds were present, the amount of white on the face was extensive including the supercelium and the back shown by one of the birds was more brownish contrasting the wings unlike what is expected for Ashy. This same wave had a few pretty Sultan Tits. A little while later, Blyth’s Shrike-Babbler called – but I was unable to see one; this bird was interesting as the same has been split recently from the more widespread White-browed Shrike-Babbler I have seen in the Himalayas. White-handed Gibbons were calling continuously and we also saw a troupe crashing through the tree top.
We drove down and spent about 30minutes birding between Stream 3 and Stream 2 but this area was totally dumb. I appreciate what Mr. Piak insisted earlier – all the birds now are “up” in the mountains and there are no birds around Ban Krang – this beats me as the habitat is excellent here and many past birders found several interesting birds here and when it rains, I would normally expect the hill birds to decent to the lower elevation forests. However, this appears not to be the case here.
After a quick meal at Ban Krang Camp site, we started making brief stops while driving down the road. One of the stops yielded several Blue-throated Barbets, one Hainan Blue Flycatcher, some Woodpeckers including Grey-headed (calls) and Common Flameback. A huge flock of Thick-billed Green Pigeons were seen in a fruiting fig with several Oriental Pied Hornbills and 3-4 Great Hornbills. A Racket-tailed Treepie crossed the road – but despite waiting for a while, it did not come out to give a proper view. Green-eared Barbets were heard calling a few times – but I never got to see one. Almost towards the end of the trip, we heard the Greater Neck-laced Laughingthrush and a Blue Pitta (!) which called a few times – we knew this is going to be too difficult for a Pitta and we were more interested in searching for a Great Slaty – which we finally never saw.
Outside the park, I insisted we spent 15 minutes to add Sooty-headed Bulbul and Chinese Francolin – the former I got easily (but not the latter) before reaching Ban Maaka and driving back to the airport.
I would be back again – possibly in March-April to see the Pittas and all the remaining four Broadbills!
Acknowledgements: Tom at Baan Maka was quite responsive to all my emails and persistent requests and made sure my stay was worth the time and cost. I probably did the right thing by taking his offer to charter the local guide Mr. Paik (or Piak?), he speaks only Thai but can manage all bird names in English. The best thing about him is that he knows almost all the calls of the woodland birds; something which is of utmost value in a rain forest where you need to throw away the trash and concentrate on the specifics. He also knows the park well and is in tune with local variations to ensure we spent the time in the good spots rather than trampling around all over. His visual skill is also sharp, and is quick to call out birds from brief views. I would recommend him for any visiting birder despite the difficulty in communication.
Prepared by Praveen J (paintedstork AT gmail.com), Bangalore, India
Red Junglefowl (Gallus gallus)
Scaly-breasted Partridge (Arborophila chloropus) : Calls heard before Ban Krang
Asian Openbill (Anastomus oscitans) : On the way to Ban Maaka
Cinnamon Bittern (Ixobrychus cinnamomeus) : Ban Maaka Lake
Black-crowned Night Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) : Calls heard @ Ban Maaka
Chinese Pond Heron (Ardeola bacchus) : Nbr birds - presumed to be this species
Eastern Cattle Egret (Bubulcus coromandus)
Eastern Great Egret (Ardea modesta) : On the way to Ban Maaka
Little Egret (Egretta garzetta)
Little Cormorant (Microcarbo niger) : On the way to Ban Maaka
Crested Serpent Eagle (Spilornis cheela) : 1 seen before Ban Krang
Shikra (Accipiter badius) : An Accipiter probably this species, before Ban Krang
White-breasted Waterhen (Amaurornis phoenicurus)
Black-winged Stilt (Himantopus himantopus) : On the way to Ban Maaka
Red-wattled Lapwing (Vanellus indicus)
Rock Pigeon (Columba livia)
Spotted Dove (Spilopelia chinensis)
Common Emerald Dove (Chalcophaps indica) : Several on the roads inside KK
Zebra Dove (Geopelia striata) : On approach road to KK entry gate
Pin-tailed Green Pigeon (Treron apicauda) : Calls between Ban Krang & Km 30
Thick-billed Green Pigeon (Treron curvirostra) : Flocks 30+ seen on two occassions on fruiting figs beside the road to Ban Krang
Vernal Hanging Parrot (Loriculus vernalis) : One heard overhead flight
Greater Coucal (Centropus sinensis) : Calls only - on the way to Ban Krang
Raffles's Malkoha (Rhinortha chlorophaea) : One bird - calling, seen well on 2nd day around Km 25-26
Green-billed Malkoha (Phaenicophaeus tristis) : Ban Maaka
Asian Koel (Eudynamys scolopaceus)
Asian Barred Owlet (Glaucidium cuculoides) : Ban Maaka only
Grey Nightjar (Caprimulgus jotaka) : One heard well and seen later at Ban Maaka, two more present
Pale-rumped Swiftlet (Aerodramus germani) : Common in the skies in KK - presumed this species
Asian Palm Swift (Cypsiurus balasiensis) : Ban Maaka only
Cook's Swift (Apus cooki) : Presumed to be this of Blyth's Swift - one sighting between Ban Krang and Km 30
Orange-breasted Trogon (Harpactes oreskios) : Two heard calling around Km 27 on Day 1 and one male seen well around Km 25 on Day 2.
Red-headed Trogon (Harpactes erythrocephalus) : A handful of sightings between Ban Krang and Km 30
Indian Roller (Coracias benghalensis) : Ban Maaka only
Banded Kingfisher (Lacedo pulchella) : One heard calling around Km 25
White-throated Kingfisher (Halcyon smyrnensis)
Blue-bearded Bee-eater (Nyctyornis athertoni) : One seen on approach road towards Ban Krang
Green Bee-eater (Merops orientalis)
Chestnut-headed Bee-eater (Merops leschenaulti)
Oriental Pied Hornbill (Anthracoceros albirostris) : Commonest Hornbill in the lower altitudes, including Ban Maaka
Great Hornbill (Buceros bicornis) : A handful of sightings around fruiting figs - including lower altitudes
Wreathed Hornbill (Rhyticeros undulatus) : Two birds - between Ban Krang and Km30 along with former species
Coppersmith Barbet (Megalaima haemacephala) : Calls @ Ban Maaka
Blue-throated Barbet (Megalaima asiatica) : A few with a big flock of Blue-eared
Green-eared Barbet (Megalaima faiostricta) : Heard a few times on the way to Ban Krang
Moustached Barbet (Megalaima incognita) : One sighting around Km 25
Blue-eared Barbet (Megalaima australis) : A huge congregation of 40+ seen on a fruting fig near the spot where the track towards the Tortip waterfall starts, other sightings beside Ban Krang approach road.
Speckled Piculet (Picumnus innominatus) : One bird seen in a bird-wave between Km 30 & Ban Krang
White-browed Piculet (Sasia ochracea) : Seen with previous species in the same bird wave
Common Flameback (Dinopium javanense) : One sighting near the road towards Ban Krang
Greater Flameback (Chrysocolaptes guttacristatus) : Only calls between Ban Krang & Km30
Grey-headed Woodpecker (Picus canus) : Only calls on the way to Ban Krang
Silver-breasted Broadbill (Serilophus lunatus) : A small noisy flock around Km 26
Dusky Broadbill (Corydon sumatranus) : A flock of four birds seen well for a long time around Km 26
Blue Pitta (Pitta cyanea) : Heard one from a side road from the main road towards Ban Krang
Black-winged Cuckooshrike (Coracina melaschistos)
Brown-rumped Minivet (Pericrocotus cantonensis) : This or Ashy - likely this species
Ashy Woodswallow (Artamus fuscus)
Great Iora (Aegithina lafresnayei) : One sighting - after Km 30
Brown Shrike (Lanius cristatus)
Blyth's Shrike-babbler (Pteruthius aeralatus) : Calls only - around Km 25
Black-naped Oriole (Oriolus chinensis)
Black Drongo (Dicrurus macrocercus)
Ashy Drongo (Dicrurus leucophaeus) : Both light and dark morphs
Bronzed Drongo (Dicrurus aeneus)
Hair-crested Drongo (Dicrurus hottentottus)
Greater Racket-tailed Drongo (Dicrurus paradiseus)
Lesser Racket-tailed Drongo (Dicrurus remifer) : Calls only - between Ban Krang & Km30
White-throated Fantail (Rhipidura albicollis)
Black-naped Monarch (Hypothymis azurea)
Asian Paradise-flycatcher (Terpsiphone paradisi) : One rufous male on the road towards Ban Krang
Common Green Magpie (Cissa chinensis) : Calls only - around Km 25
Racket-tailed Treepie (Crypsirina temia) : One bird crossed the road while returning from Ban Krang - unsatisfactory views
Ratchet-tailed Treepie (Temnurus temnurus) : Two birds seen well around Km 26
Eastern Jungle Crow (Corvus levaillantii) : Seen on the way - presumed this species
Grey-headed Canary-flycatcher (Culicicapa ceylonensis) : Very common in upper reaches
Sultan Tit (Melanochlora sultanea) : A few in a bird wave with Minivets - around Km 25
Black-headed Bulbul (Pycnonotus atriceps) : Several seen on road to Ban Krang
Black-crested Bulbul (Pycnonotus flaviventris) : Several seen on road to Ban Krang
Sooty-headed Bulbul (Pycnonotus aurigaster) : Ban Maaka
Stripe-throated Bulbul (Pycnonotus finlaysoni) : Mostly lower altitude though also seen above Ban Krang once
Flavescent Bulbul (Pycnonotus flavescens) : Mainly between Ban Krang & Km 30
Ochraceous Bulbul (Alophoixus ochraceus) : Reasonably common between Ban Krang & Km 30
Buff-vented Bulbul (Iole olivacea) : Common between Ban Krang & Km 30
Mountain Bulbul (Ixos mcclellandii) : One sighting between Ban Krang & Km 30
Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica)
Pacific Swallow (Hirundo tahitica) : A few hawking insects around Km 25
Red-rumped Swallow (Cecropis daurica)
Two-barred Warbler (Phylloscopus plumbeitarsus) : A few sightings of Greenish like Warbler in KK seem to be this species
Yellow-bellied Warbler (Abroscopus superciliaris) : Two sightings - first one unsatisfactory but 2nd one excellent - both between Ban Krang & Km 30
Yellow-browed Leaf Warbler (Phylloscopus inornatus) : Calls everywhere
Sulphur-breasted Leaf Warbler (Phylloscopus ricketti) : A couple of sightings between Ban Krang & Km30 - both times seen with next species
Alstrom's Warbler (Seicercus soror) : Two sightings
Common Tailorbird (Orthotomus sutorius) : Calls at Ban Maaka & inside KK
Dark-necked Tailorbird (Orthotomus atrogularis) : One sighting near Km 30, rest calls in lower altitudes
White-browed Scimitar Babbler (Pomatorhinus schisticeps) : Several seen and heard between Ban Krang & Km 30
Grey-throated Babbler (Stachyris nigriceps) : A few in a small bird wave past Km 30
Rufous-fronted Babbler (Stachyridopsis rufifrons) : Heard occassionally - seen well once
Golden Babbler (Stachyridopsis chrysaea) : Heard occassionally - seen well once
Pin-striped Tit Babbler (Macronus gularis) : Common in lower altitudes
Brown-cheeked Fulvetta (Alcippe poioicephala) : Common in most parts of KK
Collared Babbler (Gampsorhynchus torquatus) : One sighting of 3 birds
Abbott's Babbler (Malacocincla abbotti) : One seen calling from approach road to Ban Krang
Puff-throated Babbler (Pellorneum ruficeps)
Buff-breasted Babbler (Pellorneum tickelli) : Reasonably common in higher altitudes
White-crested Laughingthrush (Garrulax leucolophus) : Heard a couple of times
Black-throated Laughingthrush (Dryonastes chinensis) : Two flocks seen between Km 30 & Ban Krang
Greater Necklaced Laughingthrush (Garrulax pectoralis) : Calls heard from approach road to Ban Krang
Asian Fairy-bluebird (Irena puella)
White-vented Myna (Acridotheres grandis) : Outside the entry gate
Common Myna (Acridotheres tristis) : Ban Maaka
Black-collared Myna (Gracupica nigricollis) : On the way to Ban Maaka
Oriental Magpie Robin (Copsychus saularis) : Outside the entry gate
White-rumped Shama (Copsychus malabaricus) : Ban Maaka & also a few inside KK
Dark-sided Flycatcher (Muscicapa sibirica) : Common - between Km 30 & Ban Krang
Asian Brown Flycatcher (Muscicapa dauurica) : A couple of sightings
Verditer Flycatcher (Eumyias thalassinus) : Two sightings
Hainan Blue Flycatcher (Cyornis hainanus) : One seen well from Ban Krang road
Hill Blue Flycatcher (Cyornis banyumas) : Sightings of male & female from higher reaches
Tickell's Blue Flycatcher (Cyornis tickelliae) : Heard only - from road to Ban Krang
Taiga Flycatcher (Ficedula albicilla) : Commonest flycatcher in all altitudes
Greater Green Leafbird (Chloropsis sonnerati) : Two records - one call & other sighting
Blue-winged Leafbird (Chloropsis cochinchinensis) : Seen a few times - presumed to be this species
Everett's White-eye (Zosterops everetti) : A flock seen - features indicate this species over Oriental & Chestnut-flanked; however confirmation desirable.
Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker (Dicaeum cruentatum) : A few sightings in all altitudes - other Flowerpecker species probably overlooked
Olive-backed Sunbird (Cinnyris jugularis) : Common almost everywhere
Black-throated Sunbird (Aethopyga saturata) : One sighting of male between Ban Krang & Km 30
Spectacled Spiderhunter (Arachnothera flavigaster) : One sighting of two birds beyond Km 30
Streaked Spiderhunter (Arachnothera magna) : Several between Km30 & Ban Krang
House Sparrow (Passer domesticus) : On the way to Ban Maaka
Scaly-breasted Munia (Lonchura punctulata) : One seen along with House Sparrows on the way
Grey Wagtail (Motacilla cinerea)