Ko Libong

In the end our trip to Ko Libong turned into a rest which was very welcome from my perspective. In real terms though it was an excellent introduction into what I imagine will prove to be a very special birding area. I hope we can return and if we do we now know a little bit more about logistics which should make it easier to get around and make realistic plans.

I reported the sighting of the Asian Dowitchers with accompanying photographs. For my efforts, Phil Round, in effect the Thai recorder, advised me that, due to the photographs, he was treating my report as the first confirmed records of Asian Dowitcher for Ko Libong. I can also confirm the species is classified as "globally near-threatened" and my enquiries suggest that not a lot is known about this species.

Ko Libong, specifically the non-nunting  area, is a designated Important Bird Area, "IBA". I think the likelihood is the whole island is rich in bird and other natural life. One of the key tourist attractions is the possibility of seeing Dugongs or sea cows. I believe the forests will be worth exploration and will yield many species. We had a beautiful Paradise Tree Snake, chrysopelea paradisii, in the shrubs outside our bungalow.

paradise tree snake, chrysopelea paradise, Ko Libong 01.04.10

Key Sites for Conservation ( Bird Life International & Bird Conservation Society of Thailand, Bangkok, March 2004) describes Ko Libong as " a large inhabited island, several smaller satellite islands, intertidal mudflats, sandy beaches, mangroves, terrestrial forests,( including beach forest in a few areas), extensive sea grass beds, open sea and coral reefs". It goes on to say that Ko Libong is " an important staging area for migratory shorebirds and terns." It then says "Asian dowitcher ....... has been recorded at the site but is not thought to regularly occur in significant numbers."

In so far as tourism is concerned it is fairly undeveloped. I was spectacularily unimpressed by our accommodation: poor quality and very expensive. Sadly much of tourist southern Thailand appears to be about the redistribution of wealth, a crude exercise in overcharging simply in the basis of being a faraing. Thai people wouldn't be charged and wouldn't pay what we paid for food and accommodation. Once we discovered the villages our costs for eating and boat hire dropped and our morale improved accordingly! The locals, mainly Muslim fishermen and their families, were a delight.

I rather fancy a return visit this time next year with our new tent!!!!

Koh Libong, Trang Province

Asian dowitcher, limnodromus semipalmatus, Koh Libong, 02.04.10

I managed a few hours on the tidal flats of Koh Libong on Friday 1st April and most importantly of all I had the joy of observing two Asian dowitchers. I had a great view of them feeding through the scope. Alas my lenses limit the quality of the pictures but I believe they nevertheless show the key diagnostic feature.... the long straight black bill. I believe they are a bit of a rarity plus they represent a new species for my list.

Elsewhere I observed 41 lesser crested tern, 1 greater crested tern, about 20 gull-billed tern, 3 terek sandpipers, 2 ruddy turnstones, a pacific golden plover in full breeding plumage, a number of black-tailed godwits also in full breeding plumage as well as various little herons, common redshank, common sandpipers, whimbrels, curlews and plovers. A good number of these birds had Department of National Park bands on them. What looked like 8 knot, I am not sure whether great or red, appeared momentarily in my sights and possibly a dunlin. An unexpected golden gerygone appeared in the trees on the small island where I positioned myself along with a brahminy kite and a number of collared kingfishers.

I'll write more about this trip later but I think this island may be seeing a lot more of me. I will treat this trip as fact-finding, a reconnoitre. There are great forests as well as mangroves which I believe will surely have many good birds. Glad I made it this time and I recommend it to you.

Even More Laem Pak Bia

Black-tailed godwit, limosa limosa,Deserted Building, Laem Pak Bia,

 Petchaburi Province, 22.03.10

Indian Cormorant,  phalacrocorax niger,King's Project, Petchaburi Province, 22.03.10

After a weekend of no birding I headed back to Laem Pak Bia early this morning. There was plenty of bird activity at my first stop but all fairly familiar. I managed to lose my favourite pencil so that put a dampener on my morning. I headed into the King's Project and snapped this very obliging Indian Cormorant. Please don't tell me it is a Great, ok please do if it is! And please don't tell me if it is a Little!

This is the Little Cormorant from Khok Kam a few weeks ago which I originally published as an Indian with some pompous reference to "pepper" above the eye! The bill and neck are really quite different from photos of the Indian. 

I have to say I find all of this identification stuff absolutely intriguing and engrossing. 

I saw some nice birds today:  a couple of Nordmann's greenshanks, any number of marsh sandpipers, common greenshanks and spotted redshanks, curlew sandpiper, red-necked stint, a Brahminy kite, pacific golden and grey plovers, many brown-headed gulls, caspian terns, kentish plover, lesser sand-plover, little grebe, 14 painted stork, lots of eurasian curlew and black-tailed godwits and a couple of unidentifieds, notably two distant birds like curlews with decurved bills and attentuated bodies but unfortunately, only a silhouette and no other detail. No spoon-billed sandpiper and no flamingo.

A few days ago I posted a photograph of a paddyfield pipit with a leg deformity. I sent it onto Phil Round and he advises a lot of paddyfield pipits have it and it is called Knemidocoptic mange which is caused by mites.

More Laem Pak Bia!

A flock of black-tailed godwits, limosa limosa, Laem Pak Bia, 19.03.10

I was out in the salt pans once more at about 07:30h and I was barely out of my car than I have a flock of 11 Caspian terns and 50 brown-headed gulls in my sights. Suddenly birds started scurrying and I thought maybe a harrier or a kite but no, an osprey. A closer look around the immediate salt pans yields 1 Nordmann's Greenshank, unmistakable two-toned bill, washed out grey. In more distant saltpans, hundreds of great egrets are visible, dwarfing hundreds of little egrets. In nearer saltpans I count 250 eurasian curlews and 450 black tailed godwits; there is also a huge flock of black-naped terns further away which are uncountable from my viewpoint. And the regulars: black-winged stilts, spotted redshanks, little cormorants, kentish plover, red-necked stint, grey plover, common greenshank, curlew sandpiper..... As I progress in search of Spoon-billed Sandpiper I see a Dunlin, two sanderlings, many common tern, long-toed stint and the flamingo is there looking magnificent and it even does a little turn for me and shows me its beautiful wings. The large flocks are restless....... thanks be to God for school holidays! No Spoon-billed Sandpipers today but I feel as if I am getting hot!

pretty flamingo shows his wings, Laem Pak Bia, 19.03.10

from left to right

spotted redshank, tringa erythropus

curlew sandpiper, calidrid ferriginea 

long-toed stint, calidris subminuta

Laem Pak Bia, 19.03.10

curlew sandpiper,calidrid ferriginea, Laem Pak Bia, 19.03.10

spotted redshank, tringa erythropus,  Laem Pak Bia, 19.03.10

Caspian tern, sterna caspia, Laem Pak Bia, 19.03.10

Update and News

My friend Parn, www.discoverythai.com , tells me the possible greater spotted eagle at Huay Mai Teng reservoir was an oriental honey buzzard, a passage migrant. Many thanks, Parn, and I am glad I made you laugh! Mmmmmmmmmm! Maybe time to give up and get a new hobby! Far from it, I love this and I accept I am going to make a lot of mistakes. 

Oriental honey buzzard, pernis ptilorhyncus, Huay Mai Teng Reservoir, Ratchaburi. 16.03.10

Parn sends me hot news and a photograph of a Masked Finfoot, he saw at Khao Yai National Park at the Haew Sewat Waterfall near the crocodile area. A major rarity. Should I attempt a dawn start?!

Huay Mai Teng Reservoir, Ratchaburi Province

We took a drive out to this reservoir Tuesday afternoon in the heat and I wasn't expecting much. I don't know why as I have seen great birds here and I can't recall ever coming away feeling that this is not a very good place and that I would be better going to the more obvious local attractions.

I am pretty sure I saw a greater spotted eagle high in the sky with possibly a pied harrier nearby. It seemed as if they knew I was on their case as they soared higher before I had the camera on them. I managed one poor shot of the eagle. All I will say is I think it was a greater spotted but I am  not sure so I have sent the picture to a raptorologist friend.

On the ground there were a couple of yellow wagtails. These birds were unmistakably wagtails because they wagged their rears but they seemed very different from the specimen I saw at Khok Kam last week. I have had a look at the field book and there are two yellow wagtails listed, a Western and an Eastern Yellow wagtail and they are listed as separate species. Oh dear, more identification problems!

Paddyfield pipit, anthus rufulus, Huai May Teng Teservoir, Ratchaburi, 16.03.10

This little paddyfield pipit troubled me. Look at its legs. They appear to be deformed so I have sought an opinion from the professionals. It may be this bird is recently fledged and this is some sort of after birth thing which eventually disappears. I really don't know but whatever it is it did not appear to hamper the little bird's mobility and flightiness. Nearby there were a couple of gorgeous little-ringed plover, sporting a huge yellow eye ring wholly out of kilter with their otherwise dainty proportions.

The water level has dropped considerably at the reservoir and this means the road across can be used. It also means a strip of rich grass has been exposed and this will attract some interesting birds in the next few months. Last year I saw 4 river lapwings here and this was a great moment for me as I knew I was looking at something of a rarity. The first arrivals would appear to be oriental pratincoles which were a regular fixture here last year. According to the field book they are breeding visitors. I was wondering where they come from and the taxonomic name probably gives the answer: the Maldives. There were about 25 of them but they were difficult to count as they were flying in and then flying on.

oriental pratincole, glareola maldivarum, Huay Mai Teng Reservoir, 15.03.10

This wood sandpiper hung around for a while. This is a regular here. I didn't realise it has a connection with the pratincole: they both contain "glareola" in their taxonomic names. Identification is made easier by the supercilium, the eyebrow, which extends beyond the eye plus I have a couple of bad shots of the same bird in flight and they reveal full visibility of the legs and its white rear. This enables it to be distinguished from the very similar green sandpiper.

wood sandpiper, tringa glareola, Huay Mai Teng Reservoir, 15.03.10

With the reservoir level down I must remember to make a weekly run up here. I really hope the river lapwing return as well as a few other interesting species.

Today we went to Bang Pra non-hunting ground in Chonburi province east of Bangkok. We took some friends to the airport today so I thought I would check this out. We followed the directions in Nick Upton's www.thaibirding.com and reached the wildlife sanctuary where we were advised that there were no birds! When we asked if we could look, we were told no. Strange, I thought. For whatever reason I sensed the good lady wasn't going to let us enter for whatever reason. So we entered further up the road but I must confess I was in no mood for it. I think it looks as if it is an area of enormous potential and possibly to do it justice we would need an overnight stop. Anyhow I picked out this lesser coucal in the trees.There were plenty of other birds including lineated barbet, yellow-vented bulbul and lots of small, fast moving birds and many unidentifieds. I was just not in the mood!

lesser coucal, centropus bengalensis, Bang Pra, 15.03.10

I also like this dragon fly which I had never seen before and which stood still enough for me to get the camera on it.

My day wasn't helped by leaving my spectacles at home. I cannot read without them . Then I thought I had lost my favourite pencil, which I hadn't because it felt out of my trouser leg later in the evening! Plus My scope tripod has a problem; the screw that holds the scope in place has sheered off so I cannot steady the scope. A frustrating sort of day so we drove home. However I will do a bit more research and I will be back.

Huay Mai Teng Resrvoir, Ratchaburi Province

A nice shot of Huay Mai Teng Reservoir which we visited today. It's about 30 kms west of Ratchaburi town on the road to Suan Pueng. I bird here regularily ans have seen some nice birds here. The banner pic above of the three black kites was taken from almost the same spot. The water level is down considerably so the road across the reservoir on the far side is now usable. A report will follow but I need to get to bed as I am taking some friends to the airport in the morning.