Back in Bangkok and the Sukosol Hotel, I did my usual early morning walk to a nearby city park, Santiphap park just 15min walk from the hotel…only this time I took my time, lingered and enjoyed the park as a whole. Even before I got to park, as I passed the Pullman Hotel driveway….there was some activity in the trees..
A Malayan pied fantail displayed A house sparrow also posedSantiphap Park is a tiny city park..maybe two x one city blocks only….it is however carefully manicured and landscaped with many local plants and flowers with a pond in the middle…a path goes all around the park and many locals jog and walk around it…Many orchid varieties at the pond’s edge greeted me….because I took my time to walk around, I was more aware of the numerous melodious bird songs….of oriental magpie robins and fantails…..A handsome male oriental magpie robin watched over the parkA striated heron was looking out for breakfastI hadn’t appreciated that the back of the striated heron was this blue when the light caught it at a certain angleAsian brown flycatcherand then the insistent call of the coppersmith barbet caught my attentionIt’s interesting that even though it had been a year since my last visit to this park, the coppersmith barbet was seen in almost exactly the same location this time..always a pretty bird to shootthe track around the parka floral extravaganzanotices warned of the presence of monitor lizards…and sure enough there were several aroundThe turtles were also basking in the sunshineThis very pretty pied starling appeared …and he strode into his nest on the structureand then this appeared in the bushes..it looks so similar to the olive winged bulbul I saw in Singapore last weekend…but then, this being Thailand , it’s a streak eared bulbul!oriental magpie robin at his nesteven the feral pigeons are prettyThe Lagerstromia were blooming
At 8am, everyone in the park suddenly stood up to attention and the national anthem played…interesting! After an hour of just wandering around the park, I headed back to my hotel but the birding hadn’t ended yet….
a female olive backed sunbird seemed most at home amongst the wires!and a stunning black naped oriole posed
So let’s raise a glass to the city park! A much needed lung of green in frenetuc cities!
The Natural Traveller 