Blue Rock-thrush

Blue Rockthrush

Monticola solitarius

นกกระเบื้องผา

Koh Kood, Trat Province

15.10.12

I had a gentle late afternoon paddle out into the bay facing our resort in Koh Kood this afternoon aiming to alight on some rocks where the bay opens out into The Gulf Of Thailand. Into the dry bag went my scope and camera and I left the tripod out in the open. I was hoping to sneak a shot of a Pacific Reef Egret, specifically the dark morph variant; one of the coolest looking birds, in my humble opinion! I managed to get to my intended target and haul the kayak onto the rocks. In doing so I managed to flush the egrets, though I had no idea they were there! However, undeterred,  I got set up and resolved to prefocus on a rock spur just in case.....and 10 minutes later as the sun was setting a pair of these rockthrushes appeared and one parked on the spur. The light was just against me; this was shot at 320 ISO and at a lowish shutter speed (1/20 sec ) but the shot serves its purpose as a good record. I am intrigued about whether this is the philippensis subspecies on account of the chestnut undertail coverts. It is by no means an uncommon bird but it was not what I was expecting to see out here today. But what do I know?! The guidebook, (Lekagul & Round, A Guide to the Birds of Thailand ) includes under its  habitat:"rocky seacoast". Nice to see the birds behaving properly! 

Finally a shot of a fishing boat. God alone knows what ecological meltdown this type of fishing is causing.

Koh Kood, Trat Province

Pacific Swallow

Hirundo Tahitica

นกนางแอ่นแปซิฟิค

Koh Kood, Trat Province 14.10.12

We have been having a much needed rest on the idyllic island of Koh Kood; it is very close to the border with Cambodia and is somewhat overshadowed by its better known island neighbour, Koh Chang. It is very undeveloped and I imagine it has fantastic birds but I haven't made any serious attempt to get into the forests to see them. I rather fancy I saw a large owl make a crepuscular sortie from nearby shoreline forest in pursuit of prey and then it promptly returned to a dark perch. I have kayaked out into the bay these last two nights in the hope of a repeat. Alas no. What is striking is that I haven't seen a Collared Kingfisher or a White-bellied Sea eagle, two regular fixtures in Thailand's coastal waters, the latter especially in and around its many islands; no Brahminy Kites either.

Yellow-vented Bulbul

Pycnonotus goiavier

นกปรอดหน้านวล

Koh Kood, Trat Province 14.10.12

Pacific Swallows perch on the bamboo pier next to our resort and this fellow let me get close yesterday afternoon.(Update: I have seen this species in The Philippines but have just realised it is a Thai lifer and it goes onto the list as #366!) This shot highlights the differences between it and Barn Swallow: the Pacific lacks a black breast band and has more chestnut on its head, meaning the forehead chestnut patch extends further back towards its crown and nape. It's not a bird I see much of in the Inner Gulf margins but I believe it is fairly common in Thailand's inshore waters.

The Yellow-vented Bulbuls were perched nearby, again fairly common birds in most parts of Thailand. Lots of Scarlet-backed Flowerpeckers and Common Mynas in the resort gardens. Outside in more forested areas I rather fancy we have some Arctic and Dusky Warblers and lots of Drongos. There are also lots of Jungle Crows; their distinctive "caw caw caw" sound evokes dull, grey, British autumnal weather.

On the rocks extending from our resort I have seen 3 Pacific Reef Egrets, (dark morph), 2 Little Herons and a handful of Common Sandpipers. I rather fancy the habitat would be ideal for Stork-billed Kingfisher but so far I haven't seen any. I also rather fancy this place warrants serious exploration. However we all need the rest so nothing too energetic planned. It is nice to be in a place where our little boy can run wild with other kids and the resort staff grab our daughter.

Eurasian Hoopoe

Upupa epops 

นกกะรางหัวขวาน

Don Tako,  Ratchaburi Province 11.10.12

Finally the day before we left I got set up at home and managed to photograph this Eurasian Hoopoe, the axe head bird, perched on the spars which support the roof over the bays in the driving range adjacent to our house. It's a common bird here but nevertheless very striking. Just a shame it wouldn't extend its crop.

Reservoir Blues

A quick late afternoon spin to Huay Mai Teng didn't really produce much on the bird front. What was significant was the dramatic rise in the reservoir's water level. The road across the reservoir is now impassable such has been the huge volume of precipitation this last week. I had been checking records and noticed that at about this time last year I was seeing Blossom-headed Parakeet late afternoons so this was on my mind. No parakeet, no Small Pratincole, no River Lapwing, no Savanna Nightjar, not even a  Little Ringed Plover. Very ordinary fare today: Yellow Wagtail was the bird of the moment, Green Bee-eater, Red-wattled Lapwing, Paddyfield Pipit, Grey-breasted Prinia, Eastern Stonechat.......and Rain Quail, hardly ordinary fare,  were very audible but stayed invisible. The surprise package was a female Watercock scurrying into scrub, a patch tick.Then as I exited in the dark, on instinct I took a right turn and almost drove over an Indian Nightjar at ease on the red gravel track; as I watched this bird in my headlights I could discern the distant rattle of a Chinese Francolin.

Pak Thale & Laem Pak Bia

Red-necked Stint

Calidris ruficollis

นกสติ๊นท์คอแดง

Pak Thale, Petchburi Province 09.10.12

An early afternoon high tide and the prospect of good light drew me to Phetchburi's famous stretch of the Inner Gulf. The theory is the high tide will move the waders off the mudflats into the salt pans. This proved true today. On arrival at Pak Thale there were huge numbers of Eurasian Curlews and Whiskered Terns in separate flocks. Mixed up with some of the curlews was a large number of Black-tailed Godwit with a liberal sprinkling of Whimbrel; I counted two Bar-tailed Godwits. About 350 Great Knot and lots of Red-necked Stints and Marsh Sandpipers. But no Spoon-bill Sandpiper. A strange dearth of Curlew & Broad-billed Sandpiper.

White-faced Plover

Charadrius alexandrinus dealbatus

นกหัวโตขาดำ

Laem Pak Bia - sand spit, Petchburi Province 09.10.12

On to Laem Pak Bia which was strangely quiet. Two Spot-billed Pelicans and about 30 Common Greenshanks. I was eager to string some of these into Nordmann's but alas their legs were all wrong. Nine Grey Plover and a solitary Pacific Golden. Not much else and three Red-necked Stints at the Abandonned Building and nothing else.

White-faced Plover

Charadrius alexandrinus dealbatus

นกหัวโตขาดำ

Laem Pak Bia - sand spit, Petchburi Province 09.10.12

So I decided to head out to the sand spit with Mr Deng. Almost immediately we chanced on two White-face Plovers. Good numbers of Malaysian Plovers and we also had two stationery Terek Sandpipers; first time I can recall these birds seeing these birds stand still. Lots of Sanderling. L.ots of Lesser Sand-plover

Terek Sandpiper

Xenus cinereus

นกชายเลนปากแอ่น 

Laem Pak Bia - sand spit, Petchburi Province 09.10.12

The sand spit is possibly one of the nicest places to go birding in the Inner Gulf. Beautifully warm, end of day and Mr Deng is the epitome of calm and serenity. Nice afternoon.

Ban Song Nok, Petchburi

Orange-bellied Flowerpecker - male

Dicaeum trigonostigma

นกกาฝากท้องสีส้ม

Ban Song Nok, Kaeng Krachan District, Petchburi Province

04.10.12

My trip to Ban Song Nok threw up two lifers today in an otherwise fairly low key trip. The undoubted highlight was a brief glimpse of a Blue-bearded Bee-eater whose identification was confirmed by its very distinct, monosyllabic call. I am not ticking this because it really was the briefest of views, I saw a clear powder blue beard, and then it was gone. I don't know at what point I would take the tick, but this was way below "better view required". I must have some sort of reasonable contact with the bird and this wasn't it!

Orange-bellied Flowerpecker - female

Dicaeum trigonostigma

นกกาฝากท้องสีส้ม

Ban Song Nok, Kaeng Krachan District, Petchburi Province

04.10.12

I will claim the Tickell's Blue Flycatcher because I got a number of clear if somewhat fleeting views of the front and rear, not enough to photograph, but enough to identify it. The Large Scimitar Babbler was too large and too near to fit in the LCD. In fact a pretty ugly bird not helped by the fact it was having a good splash and so getting wet. So Thai lifers #364 and #365.

Large Scimitar Babbler

Pomatorhinus hypoleucos

นกระวังไพรปากยาว

Ban Song Nok, Kaeng Krachan District, Petchburi Province

04.10.12

The joy however is the simple business of photographing the flowerpeckers. The Orange-bellied is sublimely beautiful and it's still there, much to Ba Ek's surprise.

Black-naped Monarch

Hypothymis azurea

นกจับแมลงจุกดำ

Ban Song Nok, Kaeng Krachan District, Petchburi Province

04.10.12

But this is not easy-peasy stuff. Light conditions in the hide area are actually very difficult for digiscoping. Slow shutter speeds are the order of the day and this is not ideal for birds which are often moving about very rapidly. Also I  often have too much magnification so can't frame the whole bird! I do think the hide is 300 mm territory. Whatever I had the place to myself today and I got a couple of decent shots, so I'm happy.

Pak Thale & Laem Pak Bia

I am wondering if some or all of the birds in this shot are Little Stints. They were at Pak Thale this morning and they stood out because they were in their own little flock in their own little salt pan. There were plenty of Red-necked Stints in the adjacent pans and what initially struck me was these ones appeared bigger. As I scoped them the split supercilium, visible on the two right side birds, was apparent. Broad-billed Sandpiper, I wondered, but of course their bill is all wrong. On looking at the photo I am encouraged by the fine bill point and the brownish cast these birds have. I've referred the matter to the experts and shall await their judgement!

On Monday the first Spoon-billed Sandpiper of the winter was reported at Khok Kham in the Inner Gulf. So I thought it might be worth checking out Pak Thale and Laem Pak Bia. No Spooner for me today but plenty of Red-necked Stints. A huge flock of Eurasian Curlews took off for the shore soon after my arrival. I also recorded 61 Brown-headed Gulls, the first gulls I have seen in this migratory cycle. A sizeable number, 150+, of Marsh Sandpipers

Laem Pak Bia was pretty quiet. I think most of the waders had headed for the coast and the fresh offerings of the new low tide. 3 Gull-billed Terns stood out amongst hundreds of Whiskered Terns. One Spot-billed Pelican, 2 Painted Stork and a handful of mixed waders, with a good number of Pacific Golden and Gray Plovers; 2 Temminck's Stints and 3 Black-tailed Godwits at the Abandonned Building. I bumped into Mr Daeng who advised that the Great Thick Knee has been about, but not today. In the King's Project I snatched glimpses of a Painted Snipe and a Pintail Snipe; otherwise fairly quiet.

But what fun to be birding on a Wednesday........ perfect!

Wat Khao Takrhao & Khai Yoi

Well my health improved enough to enable me to get out for the afternoon and take a gentle drive down through the Khao Yoi area to Wat Khao Takrhao in Phetchburi province. Lots of big water birds. In the course of the afternoon I would estimate I saw about 50 Spot-billed Pelicans, about 20 of which were paddling around the large pool at Wat Khao Takrhao; otherwise they were liberally scattered about the Khao Yoi area and mixed up with greater numbers of Painted Stork. No surprises at Wat Khao Takrhao but huge numbers of Lesser Whistling Duck, thousands of them. I didn't make any effort to count them as they were scattered everywhere. Unfortunately my "road" has been "resurfaced" and on the basis that I was sinking into it I didn't bother to drive. So no access to the area which allows good views over the pool with the added benefit of having the sun behind you in the afternoon.

I had observed a Common Kingfisher perching on an a small fish trap so I went back to try and get a shot of it by using my hide. A Green Bee-eater and Whiskered Tern obliged for me but not the kingfisher which took off the minute I trained my lens on it. Good numbers of waders: notably Black-tailed Godwits, but also a few Marsh Sandpipers and Pacific Golden Plovers. Things are building up very nicely.