birding...

Blue-throated Bee-eater Merops viridis ©Laurence Poh http://www.laurencepoh.com/

Cambodia covers 181,040 square kilometers in the southwestern part of the Indochina peninsula. Seventy-five percent of the country consists of the Tonle Sap Basin and the Mekong Lowlands, mostly rolling plains. There are mountain ranges in the southwest: the Cardamom Mountains and Elephant Range, and to the north: the Dangrek Mountains. About two-thirds of the country is forested, however the more accessible areas have been degraded by slash and burn agriculture and logging. Cambodia’s tropical climate has a wet and a dry season of equal length; temperature and humidity are normally high throughout the year.

Birding Destinations in the Northern Plains

The deciduous dipterocarp forests that once spread across much of Indochina and Thailand were formerly home to the greatest aggregation of large mammals and water birds that have existed beyond the savannas of Africa. These forests have largely disappeared from Thailand and Vietnam; currently, the Northern and Eastern Plains of Cambodia form the largest remaining contiguous block of this unique and critically important habitat.

Much of the Northern Plains is still covered in intact habitat – extensive areas of deciduous dipterocarp forest, with scattered seasonal wetlands (called trapeangs in Khmer) and large grasslands (veals), which flood during part of the wet season (June-October). Dense evergreen forest is found along water-courses and in the more fertile soils of the upland regions.

Tmatboey Village
Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) has established a pilot ibis ecotourism project at Tmatboey in Kulen Promtep Wildlife Sanctuary, Preah Vihear province, the only known site where both Giant and White-shouldered Ibises breed and can be reliably seen. The birds are found in the forests surrounding the village, which are a mosaic of seasonally inundated dipterocarp deciduous trees.

Sam Veasna Center (SVC) for Wildlife Conservation has the responsibility to promote this project, which actively involves the local community in conservation. Tourism visits are linked to community conservation agreements, whereby income from visits supports local development and engagement in conservation activities. Local site tourism is managed by an elected village ecotourism committee. This committee is responsible for enforcement of the community conservation agreements, managing tourist visits, and ensuring that the benefits of tourism are distributed throughout the village.

Trips are usually for three nights and visitors stay in a communally-run basic wooden guesthouse with limited hours of electricity and dormitory-style beds. A separate toilet and shower facility is located behind the building. Simple but good Khmer food is prepared by the local cooks’ group using western hygiene standards. Packed lunches are available for groups staying out all day. Cold beer soft drinks and other items are available for sale at a concession stand run by the women’s group. Local villagers serve as guides to the birds.

Vulture Restaurant
The Northern Plains also support one of the last remaining populations of Asian vultures. Populations of three species (White-rumped, Slender-billed and Red-headed vultures) have declined by over 97% in South Asia in the last decade due to poisoning by veterinary use of the drug diclofenac, and are now threatened with local extinction. Cambodia is of global importance for conservation of these species as diclofenac is not available; hence these birds have an excellent chance of long-term survival. The Cambodian populations are primarily threatened by like of available food sources. Consequently semi-permanent feeding stations have been established across the vulture range to provide a safe, reliable, source of carrion.

Two-night trips to one of the vulture restaurants, at Chhep in the Northern Plains, can be arranged through the SVC. The site is very remote – requiring a 4-6 hour drive from Tmatboey on forest trails. All three species of vultures can be seen, in addition to Giant Ibises, Greater Adjutant, Sarus Cranes, Black-necked Stork and many deciduous dipterocarp forest specialties. Accommodation at the restaurant is in a basic wooden house in the forest with basic toilet and washing facilities. Food is provided by the Tmatboey cooks’ group.

Florican Grasslands
A new land-use designation - Integrated Farming and Biodiversity Areas (IFBAs) has recently been set up to protect existing grassland management systems. This will benefit both threatened wildlife and local communities, and is expected to bring wider benefits by maintaining land-use diversity in these districts, leading to better ecological and economic stability.

Trips to see the Floricans at Stoung, Kruos Kraom or Chong Doung can be combined with travel to or from Tmatboey or as a stand-alone day trip or, when visiting several sites, an overnight trip and staying at a nice hotel in Kompong Thom.

Ang Tropaeng Thmor
The 12,500 ha Ang Trapeang Thmor (ATT) Sarus Crane Reserve was gazetted by Royal Decree in February 2000. The artificial reservoir, built with forced labor during the Pol Pot regime, provides wetland habitat for 40% of the non-breeding population of the Globally Threatened Sarus Crane and numerous other threatened species of wildlife. The site is particularly good for birds of prey, starlings, ducks and large water and grassland birds, depending on the season.

ATT can boast a list of 198 bird species, the high diversity being due to the quality and variety of its natural habitats: rice paddies, trapeang and nearby deciduous dipterocarp forest. SVC usually takes birders to the site from Siem Reap, leaving at 5 a.m. and birding until lunch time. We also visit the local village silk weavers for local, hand-made souvenirs. Overnight visits can be arranged.