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| นิตยสาร สารคดี: ฉบับที่ ๒๑๖ เดือนกุมภาพันธ์ ๒๕๔๖ | ISSN 0857-1538 | |||
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| Story and Photos: Veerawat Srisuk | |||
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Located on the Thai-Malaysian border, the Hala-Bala Wildlife Sanctuary features a dense moist evergreen forest. Apart from being a part of the most fertile rainforest in Thailand, the sanctuary is also remarkable for the wealth of bio-diversity. There are numerous plant and animal species that exist there which can't be found anywhere else. Besides, the forest has not been thoroughly surveyed. It is possible there are other species that thrive there that have yet to be identified. | |
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One of the highlights for visitors to Hala-Bala is the hornbill - nine out of 12 species that exist in Thailand can be found here. Some of the commonly seen ones are the Rhinoceros or Helmeted Hornbill. This forest also houses quite a few rare birds and newly-identified species including the Short-toed Coucal, Black-browed Barbet and Fire-tufted Barbet. Hala-Bala is rich in amphibians, especially frogs and toads. There are quite a few that has a remarkable look such as the Dwarf Toad, which sports orange spots all over its small body or the colourful Spotted Stream Frog. |
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It is said that we can find up to 10,000 types of insects on a single tree in an evergreen forest. And it is probably not an exaggeration considering the multitude of insects that show up in the forest during the nighttime. There are grass-hoppers of every size, from a tiny one to those that are up to one-foot long, moths as well as various types of scarabs. Butterfly lovers will be delighted if they come here because this is where they can find the greatest number of butterflies. These include the medium-sized Malay Red Harlequin and the rare Common Clubtail. |