Thailand, world wader capital?

My recent trip to Thailand was long overdue, I had bought a field guide in Hong Kong in 1993 intending to visit but never got round to it. I went primarily for two waders I needed, but thoroughly enjoyed all of it due to the variety of species. My particular interests are dictated by photography now, waders, raptors, owls, kingfishers and bee-eaters being among my favoured families. Waders en masse are always great, hence the title, but the main point about Thailand is, like Hong Kong before it, the range of species. We recorded 40 species, but there is nowhere else where you can easily see Spoon-billed Sandpiper, Nordmann's Greenshank, Asiatic Dowitcher and Great Knot in the same area, plus Malaysian Plover and White-fronted Plover not far away. The last two were ticks for me, and they are usually seen on a boat trip, at the end of which you exit on to a sand bar and hope. Apparently the recently described White-fronted Plover is becoming scarce in that area due to increasing numbers of birders doing just that, as there is a lot of suitable habitat and they can turn up anywhere. 

 

We were sitting in our hotel having lunch, after seeing Spoonie, and our guide, Jay, said watch the beach because it sometimes gets small waders on it. Being out of season it was devoid of humans, but it wasn't long before a small plover appeared, it turned out to be a Malaysian Plover. Odd birds appeared and made their way along the beach for most of lunch, and we ended up with male and female Malaysian Plovers, Grey Plover, Sanderlings, and .....a White-fronted Plover. It was a small group, and when the less obsessive (everybody else) had left to clean up (themselves, not on the birds) before the afternoon, Jay and I were able to go down on to the beach and get some photos, the birds allowing quite close approach when there was only the two of us. After a (very) brief discussion it was decided that the landing from the boat trip would be cancelled, giving us more time for other species, such as a regular wintering Chinese Egret, Reef Herons, Collared and Black-capped Kingfishers and Golden-bellied Gerygone.

Of course, the great thing about Thailand is that there is so much more than waders, but that's for the next blog. The downside, in some respects, is that all the waders are wintering so breeding plumages are rarely seen. However, to see birds like Asiatic Dowitcher, Normann's Greenshank and Spoon-billed Sandpiper would require travel to some remote and (expensive) places. Other locations could vie for the title, but none has the same number of difficult species together. 

 As well as the main wader areas in Central Thailand several species are found in other areas. There are two Pratincoles, Oriental and Little. Bronze-winged (and Pheasant-tailed at times) Jacanas are found in other wetlands, as is Grey-headed Plover.  Indian Thicknee occurs in drier areas, and Snipe, Woodcock and Painted Snipe occur. Crab Plover, according to literature, used to be a "regular winter visitor" to one site, this in fact only happened in two consecutive years, which coincided with the first guide being written. This was told me by our leader, Jay, who co-wrote the more recent and far more comprehensive "Birds of Thailand".

 If you are a worldwide wader enthusiast, a visit to Thailand is therefore a "must". A number of waders are endangered, but several of those are island endemics. We have lost Slender-billed Curlew, and interest in the plight of Spoon-billed Sandpiper seems to be waning somewhat, especially as westerners can no longer visit the breeding grounds. All waders using the East Asian flyway are subject to many pressures, the more people visiting wader sites the better, and Thailand is possibly the easiest and best place.