Sunday, May 6, 2012

Little Prat!

Work seems to have taken over in the last couple of weeks and I have had zero time to do any birding. The last week has been especially bad, with working  in Mae Sot on the Thia-Burma border, staying in the office for several late nights, walking back to my hotel (and running the risk of getting attacked by the towns infamous dogs) and getting up at 5am to start all over again.

The only birding I got to do was at Sukothai airport, whilst waiting for a flight back to Bangkok yesterday morning - I scanned the runway and picked up a few typical wetland birds (eg Purple Heron, Lesser Whilstling Duck) but was surprised to see a distant "wader" going away from me, which I suddenly realised was actually a Small Pratincole - a species I had only seen once before (in Burma, back in February).  I quickly lost it but then picked up a couple of Oriental Pratincoles, and then got back on the Small Prat (infact there may have been two or three birds).

I have been to this airport many times before but have never seen them there, and must admit I'm a bit confused by the status of Small Praticole in Thailand as I had always thought it was known mostly from the Mekong in the far north, but I know that Gerry Brett has them breeding in Ratchaburi, plus there have been a few records from Pak Thale.

Whatever, two pratincole species together was nice to see after two weeks of no birding.

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