Turning Japanese

Khao Yai on Christmas day was excellent - arrived at the park about 7am and drove in.  Stopped after about 17kms to have a look around and heard a couple of elephants roaring in the jungle a couple of hundred meters away.

Star bird of the day was the 1st winter male JAPANESE THRUSH, frequenting the wetpatch at one of the camp sites that s favoured by bird photographers - it showed well and had a lovely supporting cast of HAINAN BLUE FLYCATCHER, ORANGE-HEADED THRUSH and SIBERIAN BLUE ROBIN.

Japanese Thrush is a rare vagrant to Thailand

Orange-headed Thrush

1st winter male Siberian Blue Robin

Hainan Blue Flycatcher

Trail B was productive with a nice mixed flock that contained GREEN MAGPIE, LONG-TAILED BROADBILL, WHITE CRESTED and LESSER NECKLACED LAUGHINGTHRUSHES, ABBOT'S BABBLER and BLYTH'S LEAF WARBLER. The Radar road was quiet but did provide a group of 5+ EYE-BROWED THRUSHES flying over and a female BLUE ROCK THRUSH.

female Blue Rock Thrush

On the 23rd I did Suan Rot Fai, where the highlight was two THICK-BILLED WARBLERS.