Thailand; Day 5 - Doi Inthanon National Park & Chiang Dao

  For our final day in Doi Inthanon National Park we birded the dry forests at the bottom of the mountain on the Mueang Ang KM13 road, a less birdy area but with a different composition of species than those we had seen at the top of the mountain. We unfortunately arrived late, having spent some time around the Motho Homestay with a few birds such as a Blue-winged Leafbird and Small-billed Minivet visiting the trees around the house.

  Once we started birding along the road, we picked up a few bits but it was generally quite slow going. The standout bird was a stunning pair of Black-naped Monarch which showed nicely in the adjacent forests. Otherwise most of our attention was spent on the good numbers of raptors that passed over, including Crested Goshawk, Crested Honey Buzzard and Crested Serpent Eagle, a full house of crested raptors. A distant Collared Falconette was also nice, but was a struggle even with the scope. Around lunchtime we found another area slightly further along the trail which was a bit wetter, and here we added more birds including Golden-fronted Leafbird, Black-headed Bulbul and Pin-striped Tit-Babbler.

  With the temperature already hot, we started our three-hour drive north to the town of Chang Dao where we would spend the next couple of days. We arrived at our next hostel, Malee’s Nature Lovers Bungalows, early evening and were delighted to find that it had a raised balcony where we could scan the nearby woodland. Although it was late, we had our first Stripe-faced Bulbul and Sooty-headed Bulbuls, both common species but new for us. Whilst visiting a nearby restaurant we had our first Asian Fairy Bluebird come to visit us.

  At night we had our first serious session out looking for owls, after we were informed of a few nice species in the area. In two and a half hours we had some excellent success, with brilliant views of Brown Boobook near the entrance to the wildlife sanctuary, and a Collared Scops Owl on the road to the nearby monastery. The Scops Owl proved especially problematic, and it took us some time before we actually managed to see the bird. However, once we did it showed nicely for all of us. It is always a good feeling when an owl session produces the goods. 

Species List:
Doi Inthanon National Park: Spotted Dove, Green-billed Malkoha, Square-tailed Drongo-Cuckoo, Crested Treeswift, Chinese Pond Heron, Crested Honey Buzzard, Crested Serpent Eagle, Crested Goshawk, Asian Barred Owlet, Grey-capped Pygmy Woodpecker, Collared Falconet, Ashy Woodswallow, Black Drongo, Black-naped Monarch, Barn Swallow, Black-headed Bulbul, Black-crested Bulbul, Red-whiskered Bulbul, Pin-striped Tit-Babbler, White-rumped Shama, Taiga Flycatcher, Purple Sunbird, Golden-fronted Leafbird, Grey Wagtail,
Chiang Dao: Spotted Dove, Himalayan Swiftlet, Black-crowned Night Heron, Collared Scops Owl. Brown Boobook, Striated Swallow, Stripe-throated Bulbul, Red-whiskered Bulbul, Sooty-headed Bulbul, Verditer Flycatcher, Taiga Flycatcher, Asian Fairy-bluebird, Grey Wagtail, Olive-backed Pipit,