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9 August 2020
 Introduction
I use eBird and they have maps with different hotspots. So I have choosed a couple of eBird hotspots that have never been visited before in Nakhon Pathom, the province next to Bangok. West of Bangkok. I like to check out never visited hotspots to see what I can discover. It takes about 45 minutes to reach the border to Nakhon Pathom from down town Bangkok in light traffic. I will visit the below never visited eBird hotspots today: • Wat Nong Kraphi (Nong Kraphi Temple) • Bang Len Red Lotus Floating Market vicinity • Wat Bang Noi Nai (Bang Noi Nai Temple) • Kamphaeng Saen Airport To skip the information and to go straight to the TRIP REPORT click HERE Guide
I usually don't use any bird watching Guide in / around Bangkok. But could be a good idea to have a Guide to help me identify all the birds I see. As it is now my eBird checklists are not very impressive as I can only ID half of the birds I see Land transportation
I rent a taxi for the day, the Driver wanted 2000 Baht (Summer 2020) and I pay him 2500 so he is happy every time I book his taxi. Equipment
Canon 5D Mk. III + Canon 5D Mk. IV Canon EF 28-300/3,5-5,6 L IS USM Canon EF 70-200/2,8L IS II USM Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens Canon Speedlite 600EXII-RT flash Canon PowerShot G7X Mark II Panasonic HC-W585 video camera Sound recorder ZOOM H5 Handy Recorder Binocular Steiner Skyhawk 8x32 (Since May 2020) Weather / climate
Weather, I don´t know if Bangkok is the hottest capital in the world. But this is what they say and I have no reason to doubt this information because it is darn hot.  Bangkok, Thailand - Climate & Temperature
Pictures from www.climatemps.com
 Bangkok, Thailand - Climate & Temperature - Click picture for full size
Pictures from www.climatemps.com
References/Resources
Thai National Parks - About the National Parks in Thailand A very good web page - Do you know that there are still wild tigers, elephants, leopards, tapirs, gaurs, bears and many monkey species in many tropical rainforests across Thailand? Do you also know that around 10% of all marine species in the world can be found in Thailand? And the fact that Thailand is the best bird-watching destination in mainland Asia? National parks are protected areas of land because they have unspoilt landscapes and a diverse number of native plants and animals. There are 127 national parks in Thailand, of them 22 marine national parks. These parks offers a diverse range of flora and fauna, home to important population of endangered species. So now it will be easy to find out if there are any National Park close to you. Bird Conservation Society of Thailand (BCST) - The Bird Conservation Society of Thailand (BCST) is one of the oldest  organisations conserving birds and nature in Thailand and is the country partner of BirdLife International. BCST's role to the local community is to spread awareness about urban birds and reconnect people back to nature.
The Logo Dated back to 1986 when BCST was then a loosely-formed “Bangkok Birdwatching Club”, the Oriental Magpie Robin (Copsychus saularis), or “Nok Gang Ken Baan” in Thai, has been chosen to represent the organisation. There are two sites covering Thailand and I have used them many times. These two web pages are actually everything you need for your birding adventures in Thailand. All the information you need about all the birding spots. Click on the map and then select your spot and you will have maps and everything you need to know about the areas. They have put a lot of jobs in to their web pages, North Thailand Birding and thaibirding.com A must to visit before you go bird watching in Thailand. www.norththailandbirding.com - A one stop only for all your birding in Thailand thaibirding.com - Nick Upton's one stop only for all your birding in Thailand. Use both www.thaibirding.com and www.norththailandbirding.com and you have a winner. Some of the maps on www.norththailandbirding.com are way better than Nick Upton´s, while some of Nick's maps are much more detailed. So I have found that if I use both the web pages for information, well, nothing else needed. PBase/Peter Ericson - Peter Ericson, a guy I thought was from USA because of his family name. I met him at Lat Krabang Paddies in May 2020 and turned out that he was Swedish. Anyway, I have used his excellent page PBase since 2016 as help to ID birds by the help from his beautiful bird pictures. Here you can also find information about birding tours. He is also having a Blog - Thaibirds and more with interesting information. Bangkok City Birding - A lot of interesting birding stories and information on this bird watching blog by David Gandy. Bangkok-based patch-worker in Suan Rot Fai, a large park close to the city's famous weekend market. He have recorded 150 species on his patch since 2008. As one of the only big green spaces in the city, “SRF” acts as a real magnet for migrants during spring and autumn, and holds a healthy selection of "sibes" during the winter months. ebird - Find birding hotspots with bird checklists from all over the world Avibase - is an extensive database information system about all birds of the world, containing over 25 million records about 10,000 species and 22,000 subspecies of birds, including distribution information for 12,000 regions, taxonomy, synonyms in several languages  www.oiseaux.net This web page is also excellent for identifying birds. There is information and range maps for many many birds from all over the world. This page is almost guaranteed to give you any answer you have about any bird in the world. Cloudbirders - Read birding trip reports from all over the world Fatbirder - Linking birders worldwide... Wildlife Travellers see their sister site: WAND  Fatbirder is a fantastic web page with information from, I think every country in the world. My first stop when I plan for my bird watching trips. There is information about locations and guides, well, pretty much everything you need to know. Sometimes this is the only place I need to visit to plan my trip. BirdingPal - find a birding Guide around the world   And the web page you cannot live without. I have been around the world looking for birds. I usually have a Guide, but sometimes it is not possible to find a Guide. So, well, I have lost count on how many times I have had help to ID birds at BirdForum. Joining this forum have been very very good for my bird watching experience. www.birdforum.net ClimaTemps.com is the place to learn about the worlds climates with more than 4000 locations documented. Each aspect of the climate is represented using colour enhanced tables and professional graphs so that data can easily be compared by switching between locations in different tabs in your browser. “A Field Guide to the Birds of Thailand and South East Asia by Craig Robson”
 A Field Guide to the Birds of Thailand and South East Asia by Craig Robson. New edition updated with 76 species since previous edition “A Field Guide to the Birds of Thailand and South East Asia by Craig” Nick Upton at www.thaibirding.com wrote “This quite excellent book is packed full of quality illustrations and written information on 1251 species recorded in Southeast Asia” I bought this book for bird watching in Thailand, but it goes for all over SE Asia I have been very happy with the “A Field Guide to the Birds of Thailand and South East Asia by Craig Robson” But I had a fire in my condo 2019 and I needed to buy a new book. I was looking for the “A Field Guide to the Birds of Thailand and South East Asia by Craig Robson” as I liked the book. But this book is not available anymore so I had to buy the “A Field Guide to the Birds of Thailand” by Craig Robson. What a disappointment this was, using the pictures in the book didn't helped to ID any birds. “Birds of Thailand” by Uthai Treesuconand Wich'yanan Limparungpatthanakij
I met Peter Ericson, a famous bird watcher and he recommended the “Birds of Thailand” by Uthai Treesuconand Wich'yanan Limparungpatthanakij. I bought the book as soon as the book stores opened after the Wuhan virus. And I am very happy with the book and I have managed to ID some birds using the book.  This new field guide will help you identify all 1049 species to have been recorded in the country to date, including the 20 species endemic or near-endemic to Thailand. -Taxonomy follows the HBW and BirdLife International Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World. -Detailed texts covering status, habitat and behaviour, age, sex and geographical variation, voice, and confusion species. -Almost 2200 illustrations covering all species and distinctive subspecies, birds in flight, males and females, juveniles and non-breeding plumages, where appropriate. -QR code for each species, linking to the Internet Bird Collection gallery of photos, videos and sounds. -More than 1025 full-colour range maps for all species other than vagrants. -Well-marked subspecies groups receive full accounts, and the distributions of subspecies breeding in the region are clearly mapped. -Local species name and local conservation status included. I like the book, but I miss the picture index. Places to visit
Nakhon Pathom Province
Nakhon Pathom (Thai: จังหวัดนครปฐม) is one of the central provinces (changwat) of Thailand. Neighbouring provinces are (from north clockwise) Suphan Buri, Ayutthaya, Nonthaburi, Bangkok, Samut Sakhon, Ratchaburi and Kanchanaburi. The capital city of Nakhon Pathom Province is Nakhon Pathom. Nakhon Pathom Province is home to the Phra Pathom Chedi, a chedi commissioned by King Mongkut (Rama IV) and completed by King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) in 1870. The chedi is a reminder of the long vanished Dvaravati civilization that once flourished here and by tradition Nakhon Pathom is where Buddhism first came to Thailand. The province itself is known for its many fruit orchards. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia I will explore the below eBird hotspots today, have a look at the hotspots by CLICKING the names below: • Wat Nong Kraphi (Nong Kraphi Temple • Bang Len Red Lotus Floating Market vicinity • Wat Bang Noi Nai (Bang Noi Nai Temple) • Kamphaeng Saen Airport Wat Nong Kraphi (Nong Kraphi Temple
This is a temple in the middle of “no where” and it was very small and it looked abandoned. This hotspot is typical farm and wetland area and then you know what kind of birds to expect. Driving north on road #3233 and you reach a village, Ban Luang and look for sign saying road #4002 on your left hand side. Turn on to road #4002, but slow! Road 4002 is bending to the left and you should go straight to get up on the dirt road.  Driving along the fields around the Wat Nong Kraphi
Follow the dirt road for 2 km and then turn left and you are soon having the temple on your right hand side. Easy to miss the temple as there is not really much to see. I was here during the rainy season so the grass along the road dirt road to the temple was very thick and high. So it was not easy to see any birds beyond the grass. But there was openings and I could see many birds on the field behind the grass. And keep an eye on the wires along the dust road as there are many interesting birds to be seen. Bang Len Red Lotus Floating Market vicinity
This hotspot is also a typical farm and wetland area with many fish farms and then you know what kind of birds to expect. And it is a beautiful area to drive around in so you will enjoy it even if you are not interested in birds. There are many herons and egrets in the area and you will see many of them while driving along the ponds. Waterhens and crakes are seen in the area and of course weavers. The weavers are every where in the area.  Bang Len Red Lotus Floating Market vicinity
 Bang Len Red Lotus Floating Market vicinity
 Bang Len Red Lotus Floating Market vicinity
I never visited the floating market as I did not expect any birds at the market. So I just drove by the market, but there is many birds in the areas surrounding the Red Lotus Floating Market. And there are many small roads you can drive along while looking for birds so the area is easily accessable. On the map you can see สวนลุงธรรมบางเลน Lotus pond, Ecological park. Well, I was on the dirt road looking for it but I could never find the Ecological park. Never mind the Ecological park, there was plenty to see in the area. Wat Bang Noi Nai (Bang Noi Nai Temple)
Wat Bang Noi Nai is located along road #3351 on Nakhon Pathom's border to Suphan Buri. You enter the temple area and you might think you have ended up at a garbage dump. I really don't understand how people can live like this, just throw the garbage and shit where you are standing. I was instantly disapointed. We found a small dirt track and we turned up on the dirt track. The dirt track goes behind the temple and you find yourself in a beautiful farmland. Farm land on the left hand side and a canal on the right hand side.  Birding behind the Wat Bang Noi Nai (Bang Noi Nai Temple)
 Canal on the right hand side
 Birding behind the Wat Bang Noi Nai (Bang Noi Nai Temple)
 Wat Bang Noi Nai (Bang Noi Nai Temple)
Yet another gorgeous area to drive around and there was plenty birds in the fields. Lesser Whistling-Ducks and Cotton Pygmy-Gooses in the fields. The male Cotton Pygmy-Goose is a very beautiful bird when you come close to the bird and you can see the different colours on the wings. The dirt track goes in a loop and you come back out on road #3351 next to the temple so no need to worry about having to make any U-turn along the narrow dirt track. Kamphaeng Saen Airport
Militay airport. Kamphaeng Saen Airport eBird hotspot: is located west of the airport. I followed the GPS instructions on the eBird app. No access to the airport from this side, at least not what I could find. Following a small dirt road along the wall around the airport. By the time we reached what looked to be the end of the driveable dirt track we had not seen any entry to the airport. The area is another farm land with fields and ponds and you can drive along the dirt roads to look for birds.  Road to Kamphaeng Saen Airport
 I thought it was a joke
Drive Car Warning! No swimming and fishing
 Small dirt track next to the wall west of Kamphaeng Saen Airport
 Small dirt track next to the wall west of Kamphaeng Saen Airport
Bird checklist
I never use any bird lists, but since I try to make it in to Cloudbirders. A very helpful site when planning your birding trips. But they ask for a bird checklist, and if I use their service, of course I want to contribute as well. My two first bird watching trip reports was rejected by Cloudbirders. So I started to take ideas from the reports I found on Cloudbirders. So I have started to use bird lists, eBird generate one for me and I can post it on Cloudbirders. I will post my birds on eBird and on my different “BIRDS THAT I HAVE OBSERVED” pages. Full Thai list updated to the taxonomy, nomenclature and sequence of the IOU/IOC World Bird List. The complete checklist, including Thai names and synonyms, can be downloaded in Excel format - Thailand Bird Checklist. - Version 8.2 (2018) - found at www.norththailandbirding.com Check lists can come in handy to find out the local name of the bird etc. And Avibase have a list with pictures and sounds, excellent! So I will post bird checklists here and if my Guides provide me with checklists I will also post them here.   Nakhon Pathom bird checklist from Avibase, click HERE - eBird version 2019 taxonomy Avibase is providing you with bird checklists from all over the world. And I´m impressed by their web page. Select country and area and you get the bird checklist. Like the PDF files I got from Avibase on the links above. You also get the checklist with pictures and sounds. The best part is that you get the local names of the birds and the online checklist gives the names in English plus the language you have selected. But it seems like the PDF cannot handle some alphabet. For example the Japanese language so it is blank in the PDF checklist. But it worked excellent with Swedish. But you get them in the local language on the online version. Bird list
I only list birds I have got on picture on my list of OBSERVED BIRDS. But since I started using eBird I have changed a bit. I list all the birds on the eBird checklist. See the DAY TO DAY report in the itinerary below. And you can visit my list of “Birds I have seen in Thailand” ONLY BIRDS I HAVE ON PICTURE. Trip Report
Sunday 9 August 2020 and we left my condo just after 6 o'clock in the morning. We drive west and I can start my eBird app at 07:21 on the dust road to Wat Nong Kraphi. Both me and the taxi driver notice that the grass and bushes along the track is very green and high because of the rainy season. So there was no good view over the field’s unless we passed an opening in the vegetation. It is getting better when we turn left at the temple and when we have passed the temple it opens up on the left hand side. Right hand side lined with trees, but I manage to see Pond Herons and Egrets in the fields behind the trees by looking under the trees. There are still bushes and grass on the left hand side and I manage to catch a Plain Prinia.  I can see Herons and Egrets in the field looking under the trees
    There were many birds sitting on the wire along the dirt tracks, but these birds are very hard to get on pictures as you have to aim the camera against the light sky. We passed a few fields that had been harvested and as we're in the rainy season there were a little water in the fields. I spotted a Greater Painted-Snipe in the field. The male was standing still so it was very hard to see. After a while I discovered that it was a couple, a male and one female was hiding behind the male snipe. I thought I saw some babies moving, but I could not confirm any movement so I put them down as a couple.  Two Greater Painted-Snipes in the field
 Two Greater Painted-Snipes in the field
  Greater Painted-Snipe / นกโป่งวิด - Male and female
We are leaving the area passing the temple going back. I spotted one Black-winged Kite sitting on the wire along the road and we tried to come closer for a picture. The bird took off but I could see that it came back to land on the wire again. Second try and I came a little closer before the bird took off. But not close enough for any good pictures, but I could see that the eyes were orange so it is a juvenile Black-winged Kite. The eyes turns red when they become adults.  Black-winged Kite
 Black-winged Kite
 Pond Heron and Little Egret
 Today's track at Wat Nong Kraphi (Nong Kraphi Temple), Nakhon Pathom
Leaving the temple behind driving east on the gravel road and we turn left when we reach the paved road. We drive north on road #3233 and as the hotspot has the word “vicinity” in the name I have planned to start the eBird app when we pass the ponds SW of the market. Leaving the paved road getting up on the dirt track between the seafood farms. We had not been on the dirt road for many minutes before I spotted a group of Asian Openbills, the biggest group I had ever seen. I put 120 birds, but it is impossible to count all the storks.  Little Grebe
 Cattle Egrets walk with the cattle along the ponds
 Pond Heron in winter plumage
 Javan Pond Heron changing to winter plumage
 Javan Pond Heron changing to winter plumage
 Javan Pond Heron changing to winter plumage
 Asian Golden Weaver building nest
And there were Asian Golden Weavers everywhere building nests along the dirt track. There was also one Crake in front of us on the road. Not possible to get any pictures so I could not ID the bird. But now I know we have Crakes in the area. I got a picture of one Little Egret before we reached the paved road. Turning left when reaching the paved road and we crossed a river / canal and we passed the floating market. Didn't bother to stop as the chance to see birds in the surrounding area is way better. According to the map there should be a park along the first dirt road after the floating market. But there was no park and not so many birds driving along the dirt track.  Crake in front of the taxi
 Little Egret
 Pond Heron
 Pond Heron
 Today's track at Bang Len Red Lotus Floating Market vicinity, Nakhon Pathom
I turned off my eBird app when we reached the paved road and we left for the next eBird hotspot: Wat Bang Noi Nai (Bang Noi Nai Temple) We drive north leaving the floating market behind. Took us about 20 minutes to reach the temple and it was not hard to find on the roght hand side driving north on road #3351. Disappointments when we got in to the temple area as it looked like they threw garbage everywhere. But I found a small dirt track and I told the driver to try the track. We ended up in a farm land behind the temple. Driving on the dirt track and we had the fields on the left hand side and a canal on the right hand side. The first birds we see in the harvested field is Whistling Ducks and a pair of Cotton Pygmy-Goose.    Cotton Pygmy Goose / เป็ดคับแค
  Today's track at Wat Bang Noi Nai (Bang Noi Nai Temple), Nakhon Pathom
Completing the loop and we are back at the temple. Driving south on road #3351 and turn west when you reach road #3231 towards the eBird hotspot: Kamphaeng Saen Airport. We been on the road for a couple of minutes when I see a Purple Heron neck sticking up through the grass/ reeds. I ask the driver to make a U-turn and we go back to look for the bird. The bird is a wee bit too far away for any good pictures.  Hard to see the Purple Heron in the vegetation
 Hard to see the Purple Heron in the vegetation
 Hard to see the Purple Heron in the vegetation
We continue towards Kamphaeng Saen Airport and I expect an airport, but as we approach the area I understand that it is a RTAF Training Centre. But following the GPS direction from the eBird app we end up at an area outside a wall and we never got to see the airport. Driving along the dirt roads between fields and seafood ponds. There are wires along the dirt roads and there are birds on the wire and it don't take long before we spot a White-throated Kingfisher on the wire.   Cattle Egret in the field
 Black-winged Stilt
 White-throated Kingfisher
  Observe the yellow vent
 Sooty-headed Bulbul / นกปรอดหัวสีเขม่า
We drove around the area on small dirt roads and I spotted a lot of birds, but no pictures as the birds was jumping around and I could not ID without pictures. But it was an interesting area, especially the crocodile warning. I was happy when we left the area and I might come back again. I think it will be better during the dry season with less dense vegetation. I thought it was a joke
Drive Car Warning! No swimming and fishing
 Today's track at Kamphaeng Saen Airport, Nakhon Pathom
Next bird watching adventure will take me to Lat Krabang in Bangkok. Click HERE to find if I see any birds.
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To www.aladdin.st since December 2005
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