Phatthalung and Khao Ok Thaw

After three days at Pak Meng Beach it was time to continue our journey south towards Malaysia. The regular tourist route from here to Langkawi would be via the islands; several hours on speedboats via the tiny border post of Ko Lipe. A much cheaper option though was to take our old favourite, the train, across the land border and make the crossing to Langkawi from the mainland. The railway south takes a more easterly route so we first had to cross the peninsular by the dreaded minivan via the regional centre, Trang, to Phatthalung province.

Two cramped van journeys awaited us so we allowed all day, booking an overnight stay on the east side of Phatthalung town. A good decision as it turned out. The journey to Trang bus station was straightforward enough but when we got to Phatthalung bus station we hit a snag.

Bus stations in SE Asia are almost always out of town on a major highway somewhere. Some towns even have more than one making it necessary to take a tuktuk or similar even if only changing buses. This is not a problem as there are always fleets of tuktuks and songthaews touting for your trade (at elevated rates as you generally have little choice). In this case however there were none. Something we've never seen before or since. All the locals on the van hopped onto scooters or got lifts. We were left asking around for options.

Phatthalung is not on the regular tourist routes so not of a lot of english was spoken but this is Thailand and everyone was extremely helpful. Phone calls were made in an attempt to find transport but in the end our only real option was two motorbike taxis. Now we don't have loads of stuff but we don't travel really light either, so each bike ended up with one of us riding pillion wearing a rucksack and a case wedged precariously wherever they could find. No helmets of course!

The journey started off ok on fairly quiet roads but this soon changed as we hit the highway and then dived into the town traffic. It was with a sense of relief, a silent prayer to an unknown entity and a vow never to let that happen again that we arrived at the Mountain View Guesthouse. And what a mountain view!

Khao Ok Thaw is typical of the heavily vegetated karst outcrops common across much of the region and our place nestled right at the base. Being right on the edge of town it is festooned with cave shrines, temples and a monastery. For us it proved a wonderful base for exploring the wildlife and was close enough to town to sample some of the day to day way of life away from the tourist traps.

Although this is mainly a wildlife blog I think a few words about Phatthalung town wouldn't be out of place. Most of our travels have inevitably been on fairly well-worn backpacker routes but this was well off the beaten track. We didn't see another westerner during our stay. Every evening a night market popped up next to the railway station and we would wander down to get something to eat. Fair to say we were something of a novelty with many people wanting to practice their English and ask where we were from. We met some fascinating people and the food was utterly brilliant.

Hooded (Chestnut-crowned) Pitta Pitta sordida cucullata

So on to the wildlife. Although a fairly small oasis of steep jungle among the urban and agricultural surroundings the mountain held a good selection of birdlife and other animals. Best had to be the Hooded Pitta (of the chestnut-crowned northern race) I found skulking away along one of the lower concrete paths leading up to the temples, etc. The only photo is, ah, pittaful but at least shows the colours. I didn't get any photos of the Orange-headed Thrush I found deep in very dark cover a little further up.

Emma Gray's Forest Lizard Calotes emma

Among the abundant non-avian fauna here was this rather splendid Emma Gray's Forest Lizard (Calotes emma), one of two lizards named after Maria Emma Gary (the other being Calotes maria). She was an English naturalist studying molluscs and algae and was also an accomplished illustrator.

Sadly our Thai visa was due to expire very soon so we had to leave after a couple of nights. I would have loved to stay longer. The train to Hat Yai from here cost less than £1 for both of us and from there it was on to Malaysia

Asian Common Toad Duttaphrynus melanostictus

Banded Bullfrog Kaloula pulchra

Chalky Percher Diplacodes trivialis

Slender Skimmer Orthetrum sabina

Malay Cruiser Vindula dejone

Mantis

Millipede Orthomorpha sp

Red-spot Marquis Euthalia monilis

Yellow-striped Flutterer Rhyothemis phyllis

Plain Tiger Danaus chrysippus

Full bird list, including those seen in and around the town (* = lifers)

Red Collared Dove
Spotted Dove
Zebra Dove
Greater Coucal
malkoha sp.
Asian Koel
* Square-tailed Drongo-Cuckoo 1
Germain's Swiftlet
Asian Palm-Swift
Black-winged Stilt (many distantly on flooded paddies)
Asian Openbill
Cattle Egret
Chinese Pond Heron
kingfisher sp. (small bird flew along the river in town)
Blue-tailed Bee-eater
Coppersmith Barbet (heard only)
Lineated Barbet (heard only)
Peregrine Falcon
* Hooded Pitta (1 of the Chestnut-headed race)
Black-naped Oriole
Common Iora
Malaysian Pied-Fantail
Black Drongo
Brown Shrike
Common Tailorbird
Dark-necked Tailorbird
Barn Swallow
Rufous-bellied Swallow
Stripe-throated Bulbul (2 near summit, 1 lower down)
Yellow-vented Bulbul
Streak-eared Bulbul
Yellow-browed Warbler 1
Pale-legged Leaf Warbler 1
Pin-striped Tit-Babbler
* Abbott's Babbler 4
Asian Glossy Starling
Common Myna
Great Myna
* Orange-headed Thrush 1
Oriental Magpie-Robin
Indochinese Blue Flycatcher (2 singing birds high on the trail to the summit cave)
Blue Rock Thrush (1 at summit cave)
Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker
Olive-backed Sunbird
Scaly-breasted Munia
Eurasian Tree Sparrow

Pak Meng Beach

It's a sad fact that travelling on an extremely tight budget forces you to forgo certain places. So it was as we arrived for the first time in southern peninsular Thailand after a very pleasant sleeper train south from Hua Hin. To our west lay a tempting array of beautiful tropical islands but we found that the ferry fares were at holiday-maker prices and would be impossible on the money we had allowed ourselves. So when we got to Trang we took a local bus to the west coast and stayed at Pak Meng Beach on the mainland.

This was my first time on the Andaman Coast and my first real taste of Sundaic fauna. Many potential lifers lay among the resident and wintering birds as we moved further south. More would have been possible by pushing into the mangroves and reserves to the north and south but this list was just from a couple of days spent in the accommodation garden, the beach area backed by extensive casuarina trees and the road running north just inland.

The swiftlets were particularly interesting here as they fed very low along the beach and detailed comparison between the species was possible.

Brahminy Kite Haliastur indus

Dollarbird Eurystomus orientalis

Forest Wagtail Dendronanthus indicus

Greater Sandplover Charadrius leschenaultii

Grey-capped Woodpecker Yungipicus canicapillus

Olive-backed Sunbird Cinnyris jugularis

Orange-bellied Flowerpecker Dicaeum trigonostigma

Pacific Swallow Hirundo tahitica

Feral Pigeon
Red Collared Dove
Spotted Dove
Zebra Dove
Greater Coucal
Green-billed Malkoha
Asian Koel
Great Eared-Nightjar
Seen overhead when nearly dark, calling. Call sounded very like Malaysian Nightjar but calls quite similar and assumed to be this species on range.
* Black-nest Swiftlet
Definitely present alongside Germain's. Good views as they hawked low over the beach. Dark rump and structural differences clear.
Germain's Swiftlet
* Grey-rumped Treeswift
Greater Sand Plover
Lesser/Greater Sand Plover
Whimbrel 4
Common Sandpiper 4
Pacific Reef-Heron 2
Crested Honey-buzzard 2
Brahminy Kite
Brown Boobook
Eurasian Hoopoe 1
White-throated Kingfisher 1
Indochinese Roller 3
* Dollarbird 1
Coppersmith Barbet
Lineated Barbet
* Grey-capped Woodpecker 1
Ashy Minivet
Common Iora
Ashy Drongo - many in casuarina trees along beach
Large-billed Crow
Common Tailorbird - only in the garden of the accommodation
Dark-necked Tailorbird
Barn Swallow
Pacific Swallow
* Rufous-bellied Swallow 2
Streak-eared Bulbul
* Asian Glossy Starling 1
Common Myna
Asian Brown Flycatcher 1
* Orange-bellied Flowerpecker 1 - in garden
Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker
Olive-backed Sunbird
Eurasian Tree Sparrow
* Forest Wagtail - In woodland along inland road running parallel to beach towards the pier.

Spectacled Langurs

Next stop on our SE Asian tour was Pran Buri. This is a bustling town near Hua Hin on the western seaboard of Thailand and not usually on any traveller's list of places to stop. However we were once again spending a week with the Gift Of Happiness charity as they distributed donations to schools in the hills west of the town. The schools here are run by the Thai Border Police for the Karen hilltribes as part of a long-running, successful initiative to reduce border crime in the area. In the past the area was rife with smuggling, people trafficking and related crime but with the cooperation of the Karen tribes this has been all but eliminated.

Each day we would make fairly arduous drives into the interior to reach the schools where the clothes, toys and other donations were sorted out and then a fabulous comedy show put on for the children. Read the full report here.

Time to watch for wildlife was limited but there were a few interesting things to see. Wild Elephants were around in a couple of places and although we didn't see the animals we did come across signs a few times. A troupe of Spectacled Langurs at one school showed very well and even moved into trees where they could see the show, curious about the noise coming from the outdoor hall.

Birdlife was fairly unremarkable but I did see my first Hair-crested Drongo for some time and Common Hill Mynas were plentiful at one school. Raptors were well represented with Crested Honey-buzzard, Crested Serpent-Eagle, Mountain Hawk-Eagle, Eastern Marsh Harrier, Shikra and Oriental Hobby all showing. Thick-billed Flowerpecker was the only lifer.

At the end of the week we spent a day by the sea in Hua Hin where Whiskered & Common Terns, Little Egrets and Pacific Reef Egrets fed in the open sewer flowing into the sea.

Spectacled Langur Trachypithecus obscurus

Bar-winged Flycatcher-shrike Hemipus picatus

Hair-crested Drongo Dicrurus hottentottus

Orange Gull Cepora judith

The Clipper Parthenos sylvia

Feral Pigeon
Red Collared Dove
Spotted Dove
Zebra Dove
Greater Coucal
Asian Koel
Himalayan Swiftlet
Red-wattled Lapwing
Whiskered Tern
Common Tern
Asian Openbill
Little Egret
Pacific Reef-Heron
Cattle Egret
Crested Honey-buzzard
Crested Serpent-Eagle
Mountain Hawk-Eagle
Eastern Marsh Harrier
Shikra
White-throated Kingfisher
Green Bee-eater
Indian Roller
Coppersmith Barbet
Oriental Hobby
Bar-winged Flycatcher-shrike
Ashy Woodswallow
Brown Shrike
Black-naped Oriole
Black Drongo
Hair-crested Drongo
Greater Racket-tailed Drongo
Barn Swallow
Stripe-throated Bulbul
Streak-eared Bulbul
Yellow-browed Warbler
Asian Brown Flycatcher
Taiga Flycatcher
Common Hill Myna
Asian Pied Starling
Common Myna
Great Myna
Thick-billed Flowerpecker
Plain-throated Sunbird
Olive-backed Sunbird
Eurasian Tree Sparrow

A Week in Ayutthaya

Ayutthaya is an ancient capital of Thailand and UNESCO World Heritage site with many old temples some in various stages of ruin and/or restoration. As a town it leaves much to be desired. The roads are very busy and the place is not well looked after in comparison to other Thai towns. There's a general air that people can't be bothered.

After the first night in the town fairly near the railway station we moved on to a quieter place on the Chao Phraya river in the SW corner of the 'island'. The Athithara Homestay suited us very nicely and was next to an excellent quiet park with many old ruins, very few people and some relatively undisturbed wilder habitat. As a result the wildlife was pretty good and we stayed all week.

Kingfishers were particularly well represented. Up to 4 Pied Kingfishers plied the river in front of the guesthouse and Common, White-throated, Black-capped and Stork-billed Kingfishers all showed well in the park. Owls were also pretty good with Asian Barred and Spotted Owlets both showing well. Small Minivets were quite common with 2 even turning up at the railway station when we left.

Yellow Bittern was quite numerous and a wintering Thick-billed Warbler was another highlight. Lineated Barbets were particularly plentiful, Plaintive cuckoos could be quite showy and Red-wattled Lapwings were everywhere. Singing Dark-necked Tailorbird seen on first day appears to be quite unusual here perhaps.

Other wildlife included several Water Monitors, a few Common Treeshrews and at one of the outer temples (Wat Chai Watthanaram) a colony of Black-bearded Tomb Bats.

White-throated Kingfisher Halcyon smyrnensis

Stork-billed Kingfisher Pelargopsis capensis

Black-capped Kingfisher Halcyon pileata

Pied Kingfisher Ceryle rudis

Common Kingfisher Alcedo atthis

Spotted Owlet Athene brama

Small Minivet Pericrocotus cinnamomeus

Red-wattled Lapwing Vanellus indicus

Plaintive Cuckoo Cacomantis merulinus

Oriental Magpie-robin Copsychus saularis

Little Cormorant Microcarbo niger

Lineated Barbet Megalaima lineata

Indochinese Roller Coracias affinis

Black-bearded Tomb Bats Taphozous melanopogon

Giant Crab Spider Sparassidae

Chinese Pond Heron Ardeola bacchus

Blue Glassy Tiger Ideopsis vulgaris

Kapok Bug Probergrothius nigricornis

Rock Dove

Red Collared Dove

Spotted Dove

Zebra Dove

Greater Coucal

Green-billed Malkoha

Asian Koel

Plaintive Cuckoo

Germain's Swiftlet

Asian Palm-Swift

White-breasted Waterhen

Red-wattled Lapwing

Whiskered Tern

Asian Openbill

Little Cormorant

Yellow Bittern

Great White Egret

Little Egret

Cattle Egret

Chinese Pond Heron

Black-crowned Night-Heron

Shikra

Brahminy Kite

Asian Barred Owlet

Spotted Owlet

Eurasian Hoopoe

Common Kingfisher

Stork-billed Kingfisher

White-throated Kingfisher

Black-capped Kingfisher

Pied Kingfisher

Blue-tailed Bee-eater

Indochinese Roller

Coppersmith Barbet

Lineated Barbet

Ashy Woodswallow

Common Iora

Small Minivet

Black-naped Oriole

Black Drongo

Ashy Drongo

Malaysian Pied-Fantail

Black-naped Monarch

Large-billed Crow

Barn Swallow

Red-whiskered Bulbul

Streak-eared Bulbul

Yellow-browed Warbler

Thick-billed Warbler

Common Tailorbird

Dark-necked Tailorbird

Plain Prinia

Asian Brown Flycatcher

Oriental Magpie-Robin

Taiga Flycatcher

Common Myna

Great Myna

Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker

Paddyfield Pipit

House Sparrow

Eurasian Tree Sparrow