Mangroves can be a very tough environment for birding in due to the low density of birds, low number of species and the often fragmented habitat with limited access. However, over the last week I have visited a couple of areas of mangroves in Southern Thailand where the birding has been surprisingly good and I have succeeded in seeing most of the species that occur in the mangroves at Phang Nga and Satun, including a couple of very scarce ones.
Independent Birding at Zaamin National Park | Birding in Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan is a surprising country with a wide variety of landscapes, ancient historical monuments, some interesting food and drink as well as good infratructure that makes the country easy to travel in independently. However, my wife and I pushed this a little further than most travelers to the country by visiting Zaamin National Park where [...]
City Park Bird Abundance | Birding in Thailand
For those of us lucky enough to travel internationally to see birds it quickly becomes apparent that in some countries birds are abundant while in others birders have to work harder to see a wide range of species. This was brought home to me most recently spending a morning at Sri Nakorn Kuean Khan Park [...]
Touristing & Birding at Petra | Birding in Jordan
For those of us who travel with non-birding partners it can sometimes be tricky to balance enjoying time together somewhere interesting and the craving to maximise the opportunity to see new birds in new places. Personally, having a good holiday with my wife is the most important thing when planning trips together but doing some [...]
Rainy Season Birding at Pathum Thani Rice Research Centre | Birding in Thailand
There can be times of the year when bird watching hits a trough because a lack of activity, unhelpful weather or overfamiliarity with a smaller selection of species than at other times. In Thailand these factors are all true in the rainy season with a large number of species absent, on their breeding grounds further [...]
Mountain Birding from Chimgan | Birding in Uzbekistan
I have always loved immersing myself in mountain landscapes but over recent years my opportunity to do so has been limited with much of my time spent in tropical forests and wetlands in Thailand so when the opportunity presented itself to spend some time birding in mountain habitats in Uzbekistan I took it without having [...]
Sanderlings Feeding & Rhynchokinesis – Thailand Birding
March 30th, 2016 
Nick A few days ago I visited Pranburi Forest Park in Prachuab Kiri Khan province for a few hours in the afternoon. There was not a lot to be seen in the mangroves and the coastal woodland, just a single Forest Wagtail, some Malaysian Pied Fantails, an Indian Roller and a few Golden-bellied Gerygones. However, on the beach there were up to 100 shorebirds, most of which were Lesser Sand Plovers with a smaller number of Pacific Golden Plovers, 4 Malaysian Plovers and around 10 Sanderling. I sat down close to where they were feeding and waited and after a short time many of these birds came quite close to me as they fed. It was particularly interesting to watch the Sanderlings feeding and the following are some photos showing their feeding behaviour including an example of “rhynchokenesis”. Read more »
More Photos from Laem Pak Bia – Thailand Birding
March 28th, 2016 Nick Yesterday, for a second day, I found myself with time alone to visit Laem Pak Bia and Pak Thale. Shorebird numbers were very low compared to a few weeks ago so it appears that most birds have already left for their breeding grounds. I still managed to see 1 Spoon-billed Sandpiper at Pak Thale even though I was not really looking for it. There were no birds near enough to photograph at Pak Thale so I moved on to Laem Pak Bia salt pans where I saw 10 Nordmann’s Greenshank – far away! However, after a fair bir of driving around I did find some birds close enough to take photographs of – here are some of the best. Read more »
Photos from Laem Pak Bia – Thailand Birding
March 26th, 2016 Nick This afternoon I spent a few hours at Laem Pak Bia photographing birds. It was one of those rare times when I was out on my own so I did not have any particular need to see anything in particular, I simply enjoyed whatever species presented themselves at close range so that I could attempt to get some decent images. This I managed to do to a certain degree, limitations of the camera, photographer, light and lack of birds doing their best to put a spanner in the works but the following are some of the best photos I obtained.
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A Morning at Sri Nakorn Kuen Khan – Thailand Birding
March 24th, 2016 Nick After a pleasant few days off from a hectic birding schedule spanning the last 4 months I decided to go to Sri Nakorn Kuen Khan Park, near my home in Bangkok, to see if I could find any interesting passage migrants. In fact, March seems to be the peak time for Zappey’s Flycatcher in Thailand and with a few sightings from various parts of the country recently I was hoping for this species to be my latest “lifer”; certainly I have found this site to be a good place for finding new birds during Spring migration over the last few years.
After a slow start, once again I found a nice collection of migrant birds in the park,including a male Zappey’s Flycatcher, spending around 3.5 hours there until the clear weather meant that grounded migrants became thin on the ground. Below are some photos I took while birding around the park this morning. Read more »
Photos From Cambodia Birding Tour
March 21st, 2016 Nick Yesterday I returned to Thailand after leading a successful birding tour to Cambodia to see a number of mainland Southeast Asia’s most endangered species alongside Sophoan Sanh of the Sam Veasna Centre. We enjoyed great views of a very high proportion of our target birds including a point-blank encounter with a pair of Chestnut-headed Partridges on the penultimate day but preceded by superb birds such as Greater Adjutant, Lesser Adjutant, Giant Ibis, Sarus Crane, Bengal Florican, White-shouldered Ibis, Manchurian Reed Warbler, Cambodian Tailorbird, Mekong Wagtail, Woolly-necked Stork, Great Slaty Woodpecker, Yellow-crowned Woodpecker, Rufous-bellied Woodpecker, Black-necked Stork and many others.
If you would like to join me on a birding tour to Cambodia you can see the next upcoming itinerary here – Cambodia Birding Tour
Read on for photos and commentary from the trip .
Birding Around Angkor Wat | Cambodia Birding
March 9th, 2016 Nick Birding around one of the world’s most famous landmarks, Angkor Wat in Cambodia, this morning was a strange experience, not quite knowing whether to look at the birds in the surrounding woodland or the magnificent ruins that loomed over us wherever we stopped. We entered the grounds of Angkor Wat from a little-used gate, having the place to ourselves, away from the crowds at the main, Western gate. Although the main attractions are the temple complexes there were a surprising number of birds to be seen, starting with Asian Barred Owlet perched on a dead branch. The early morning activity gave us plenty of species including a pair of mating Shikras, a few Oriental Pied Hornbills and the first of many Lineated Barbets and Red-breasted Parakeets. All of these were nice but we had a few target species here that we would be unlikely to see anywhere else on our Cambodia Birding Tour.
