Tuesday afternoon, 11th December. Just arrived back at White Beach having spent a fantastic long weekend with Neil and Eunice, up in the hills of the Kaeng Krachan national park. We stayed at the superb Baan Maka lodge, which is just ten minutes from the park entrance and  has some great birding ‘on the door step’. We spent two full, 12 hour days, in the park itself and another pottering around the outskirts and saw some superb birds, some of which are featured in the photo kaleidoscope below. We’re off to Bangkok tomorrow afternoon for a last night with our friends before getting ready for the evening flight on Thursday.

But first the pics….

Dawn over the lake ‘at the bottom of our garden’ at Baan Maka

We had numerous Babbler species, this was a particular favourite, Collared (a split from White-hooded)

One of the families well represented at Kaeng Krachan is Hornbill – this one is Oriental Pied

The ‘difficult to see’ Green-billed Malkoha

One of a pair of absolutely lovely roosting White-fronted Scops Owl

Greater Necklaced Laughingthrush drinking at a forest pool

Not to be confused with common or garden chicken – Red Jungle Fowl, the real thing!

Grey-faced Buzzard with a freshly captured squirrel

Asian Barred Owlet roosting in the grounds of Baan Maka

Kalij Pheasant – another deep jungle-dwelling species

Another Kaeng Krachan speciality Ratchet-tailed Treepie, the only place in Thailand it occurs

and another member of the family,  Rufous Treepie

A nice male Olive-backed Sunbird

Our only Thai parrot species – Vernal Hanging Parrot. A beauty nonetheless

One of a few Barbets seen – this one, at the entrance to Baan Maka, was Lineated

Just down the road from Baan Maka was an excellent lily pond with a family of Bronze-winged Jacana

Seen crossing the road on our journey back to the lodge – a rather large python!

and a real kaleidoscope of colour – butterflies at a ‘mineral lick’

And to finish with a Great Hornbill – what a monster!