Thailand: Doi Inthanon National Park

 Doi Inthanon National Park

Morning near the summit of Doi Inthanon

Doi Inthanon is the highest point in Thailand, and also a prime birding spot. From our lodge, we headed up the mountain side early in the van. As soon as we stepped out, colorful forest birds were all around. This Large Niltava was a gleaming blue beacon in the forest.

We were knocked over by a group of Chestnut-tailed Minla, also known as Bar-throated Minla. This is another great example in the laughingthrush family, Leiothrichidae that has no parallel in the new world.

In the unique swamp forest near the summit we came face to face with this Blue Whistling-thrush. Like an American Robin in iridescent blue and speckled on the back.

The moss-draped swamp forest at the summit of Doi Inthanon

Sunbirds were in good numbers. Amazing birds, they bounce around on the branches like little colorful jumping beans. They serve in the role that hummingbirds do in the new world, and the illusion (so to speak) is very realistic. This brilliant Green-tailed Sunbird is the Doi Inthanon subspecies, with a bright red breast. (Surely soon to be a full species, given the current trend in taxonomy.)

That afternoon, Mr. Chalee took us to mid-mountain forest area and played a frogmouth call. He got a response almost immediately, so we started searching through the forest. I thought, "Yeah, right." Frogmouths are motionless in the daytime and cryptically patterned. It was probably worth a few minutes before surrendering to the inevitable field note, "heard only." Mr. Chalee had different plans. He looked here, looked there, looked up, and then exclaimed. Amazingly, he had found the motionless brown puffball 60 feet up in the canopy, and we got the scope on it -- Hodgson's Frogmouth. It was an astonishing feat. Looking almost straight up, we did not get the full effect of this strange bird, but it was a thrill nonetheless. Frogmouths are restricted to the old world -- in fact, restricted to southeast Asia. 

Hodgson's Frogmouth, Doi Inthanon. Photo through a scope, which explains the poor quality.

Back at the van, we found Hume's Treecreeper (like an oversized Brown Creeper from home) and White-browed Shrike-babbler.

On the end-of -day walk near the lodge, we admired a flock of Striated Swallows and Red-rumped Swallows. We stayed at Rimthan Inthanon Resort, a rather rustic place in a small Karen village, but with great Thai food (as usual) and immersed in the sounds of Brown Boobook, Mountain Scops Owl, Asian Barred-owlet and nightjars all night long.

Doi Inthanon is a magical place indeed. We were overwhelmed with its brilliant birdlife, including Speckled Wood-pigeon (a flyover), Gray-chinned and Short-billed Minivets lighting up the tree branches, Clicking Shrike-babbler, Yellow-bellied Fairy-fantail, Yellow-cheeked Tit, Black-backed Sibia, Chinese Vivid Niltava, Gould's Sunbird, Slaty-bellied Tesia, Chestnut-flanked and Indian White-eyes, Rufous-winged Fulvetta, Snowy-browed Flycatcher, and Red-headed Trogon. On the way out through the foothills, we stopped to scope White-rumped Falcon and Collared Falconet, both pint-sized raptors.

The next in the chain of Chiang Mai mountain gems would be Doi San Ju.

Back to the Outskirts of Chiang Mai.