More than 10 years ago I visited Hellfire Pass, in Kanchanaburi, because I was interested in the history of World War II from that area. As the site was partially forested I took my binoculars and was lucky enough to see a pair of Limestone Wren Babblers, the crispifrons race rather than the calcicola race that is normally seen at Saraburi.

Last week I revisited the site to see if the Wren Babblers could still be found there and was pleased to easily find a pair within about 20 minutes of entering suitable, rocky habitat. What was most interesting about this sighting was that it occurred in exactly the same spot as I had seen them over 10 years ago.

This pair of Wren Babblers were slowly picking their way through the rocks, finding a morsel of food here and there but were completely unimpressed with my call playback and I was unable to lure them in close enough for a decent photograph.

Some time later, after viewing the railway cutting itself I came across 3 more Limestone Wren Babblers along the walking trail which follows the original path of the railway; it would seem that this location is a reliable site for the crispifrons subspecies of Limestone Wren Babbler. It just needs someone to go and get some good photos of this seldom-seen taxon.

Further to these observations I also saw a pair of Limestone Wren Babblers on the cliffs at the Vajiralongkorn dam in Thong Pha Phum district.