Khao Yai National Park
Mr.Rich visited on 24-25 Sep. 2000
Facts:
*Thailand's oldest National Park, designated
on the 18th September 1962.
*Thailand's third largest National Park covering
2,168 sq km.
*Located within the Dongrek Mountain Range
with altitudinal ranges from 200 to 1,351m
above sea level.
*Relatively cool climate with an average
temperature of 23 degrees centigrade.
Khao Yai National Park was established in
1961, the oldest national park in Thailand;
it covers 2,172 sq km and includes one of
the largest intact monsoon forests in mainland
Asia. Considered by many park experts to
be among the world's best national parksm
Khao Yai was recently designated an Association
for South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) National
Heritage Site and has been nominated for
international status by the UN.
Three Seasons:
Rainy Season:
May - October. Rains most days, the waterfalls
are thus stunning. Can get clear cool weather.
Cool Season;
November - February. Gets as cold as 10 degrees
C at night - you will want blankets. Clear
skies and great sunsets are common.
Hot Season:
March - April. Hot and dry, but still cool
compared to the plains, only reaching the
mid 30 degrees C.
Forests:
Tropical moist evergreen forest covers the
central area of the Park, the rich diversity
of plants (about 2,000 species) is astounding
to the newcomer. Towering trees are draped
in mosses, climbers and epiphytes. From the
tangled trunks of strangling figs to the
drooping lianas, the spiny rattan palms and
delicate ferns to the multicoloured lichens
and an ever-changing array of fungi, there
is always something new to discover in the
forest. The terrain covers five vegatation
zones: evergreen rainforest (100 to 400m);
semi-evergreen rainforest (400 to 900m);
mixed deciduous forest (northern slopes at
400 to 600m); and hill evergreen forest (over
1,000m), plus savannah and secondary-growth
forest in areas where agriculture and logging
occurred before it was protected.
Forest structure:
Big trees compete at both canopy and root
levels. Some species are able to creep beyond
the canopy for light. The five layers of
the forest are as follows: dominant tree,
co-dominant tree, intermediate tree, shrub
and undergrowth.
Dry evergreen and mixed deciduous forest:
Both forest cover the lower slopes of the
Park and some of the higher sections. Stands
of bamboo are often an indicator of drier
forest.
Hill evergreen forest:
Hill evergreen forest covers the highest
peaks (Khao Kieow and Khao Rom), the trees
are smaller here, and ferns, mosses and epiphytes
abound.
Dry dipterocarp forest:
Dry dipterocarp forest covers the southern
areas of the park in Pachinburi province.
Thee trees here are relatively small because
of shallow soil.
Grassland:
There are also large areas of grassland,
which are managed (by being burnt annually),
to prevent trees from invading and to provide
year round grazing for deer, elephants and
guar. The grasslands we can see from the
road were inhabited by villages from 1902
until the mid 1930's. They farmed rice and
other foods, hunted wildlife and gathered
forest products. The grass species is very
hardy, and loses its leaves to reduce water
evaporation. It is also able to survive fire,
because it regrows from an underground bulb
which is able to reshoot as soon as rainy
season comes. The grassland itself, however,
can not provide enough minerals for the animals
to have a healthy diet, and so they must
supplement their diet from saltlicks. The
minerals in a saltlick depend on its location.
Fauna:
Wildlife is abundant and diverse, (70 mammal
species and 74 speces of reptile occur) but
often shy and hard to see.
Sambar (large, gray-brown, often in groups)
and barking deer (smaller, red-brown, usually in pairs of
alone) are frequently seen in the grasslands
or on
spotlighting tours.
Gibbons provide an excellent morning awakening.
Macaques are often seen on the roads. Wild Elephants, which reside some 200 to 300 within the
park boundaries, are sometimes spotted at
saltlicks or on the road in the evenings
and lucky tourists may spot a tiger in the
grasslands during the evenings. Civets, squirrels, porcupines and wild pigs add even more
variety.
Birds, over 320 species have been recorded.
To the non-expert, birds are often just mysterious
whistles, trills and calls, or a flutter
of wings and a glimpse of colour. Patience
is needed, good binoculars and a bird guide
will help to find. Roadsides, the old golf
course, grasslands and the watching towers
are good places to start. Hornbills are quite easy to spot, and you will hear
the "gak gak gak" laugh of the
Indian
Pied (often seen in big flocks near Nong
Pak Chee Watchtower in the evenings), or
the deep resonant "gok gok" of
the Great Hornbill (usually seen in pairs
or alone, the biggest of Khao Yai's hornbills).
See exciting MPG movie --- 1.Squirrel (266KB) --- 2.Hornbill (269KB) ---
Bats, nearly one million insect-eating bats live
in a cave on the edge of the park. Drive
about 3 km to the north of the Pak Chong
entrance gate and take a small track on the
left-hand side just past a Temple. A few
hundred meters up here, take a right-hand
turn and follow the track to the end. You
can climb the hill to the cave, but do not
use flash photography, lest the bats be disturbed.
See exciting MPG movie --- 3. Bats (266KB) ---
Reptilians, a variety of snakes, poisonous
and non-poisonous, can be encountered. They
usually make their presence known by a rustle
in the undergrowth. If you see a snake, treat
it as dangerous unless you know otherwise.
Gheckos are small lizards frequently seen
catching insects. Khao Yai is also famous
for its leeches, which live by sucking blood
from other animals.
See exciting MPG movie --- 4. a leech (209KB) ---
Invertebrates, in the forest you will notice the incessant hum of the cicada. Look up, down and from side to side and you will see the real movers and shakers of the forest- inverte- brates and insects. They act as key species in the pollination and decomposition of plants. They are prey for many other animals, and of course they themselves are notable predators. Also you will notice beautiful coloured butterflies flying around, over 400 species are found here.
See exciting MPG movie! --- 5. a stag beetle (175KB) --- 6. scorpion dance (195KB) ---
