Famous rainforest sanctuary of large mammals, including gibbons, bears, elephants and tigers - Thungyai-Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuaries 591
What and Why
The Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary (Thai: เขตรักษาพันธุ์สัตว์ป่าห้วยขาแข้ง, K̄het rạks̄ʹā phạnṭhu̒ s̄ạtw̒ p̀ā h̄̂wy K̄hā K̄hæ̂ng) is an animal sanctuary park established in 1974 CE, and is part of the largest intact seasonal tropical forest in Southeast Asia. It contains large populations of large mammals, including gibbons, bears, elephants and Indochinese tigers, although like all other sites in Southeast Asia, some species (like rhinoceroses) have disappeared or have experienced severe declines.
See
A large number of the animal and plant life diversity are residents of the park and some of them cannot be found anywhere else in the world, with species such as the Sino-Himalayan, Indo-Burmese, Sundaic, and Indo-Chinese affinities, being examples. Species present in the wildlife sanctuary are usually rare, endangered, or local. Roughly one-third of Southeast Asia's mammals are said to be thriving within the wildlife sanctuary: wild water buffalo, mainland sera, and Indian hog deer. Many species of birds, reptiles, and amphibians have also been reported. The most important mammals that are currently residing in the sanctuary are the 90 wild Indochinese tigers.
The park is massive and some of the best sceneries are the waterfalls which are located on the west of park, near the Thailand-Myanmar border. The picture below shows the Namtok fall, which is a two-day hike from the park headquarter.
The sanctuary honours one of the most important conservationists and natural scholars in Thailand, or possibly the world in Seub Nakhasathien (สืบ นาคะเสถียร). He was instrumental in protecting this particular park and Thungyai Naresuan Wildlife Sanctuary, which eventually got it enlisted in UNESCO WHS. In fact the park probably would not have existed if it was not for his effort.
In the late 1980s CE, while Seub was working as head of the park, he was under pressure from many fronts including workers' wage problem, disagreements with higher-ups, the death of some employees at the hands of encroachers. All of these lead to Seub realising that the only way to fully conserve the sanctuary was to make the park a UNESCO WHS. He researched and completed the report to that effect and then submitted it to UNESCO which approved it after his death. Seub committed suicide in 1990 CE, succumbing to the pressure, while signifying the importance of the environment and its conservation.
Eat and Drink
Thai cuisine (อาหารไทย)
Thai cuisine (อาหารไทย, xāh̄ār thai) is now one of the most prominent cuisines in the world and needs no introduction. It features extensive use of aromatic herbs with a spicy edge like coconut milk, lemon-grass, basil and fish-sauce (น้ำปลา, n̂ảplā). One of the most recognised Thai dishes is the tom yam goong (ต้มยำ), the spicy-sour prawn soup. Tom yam goong are actually three separate Thai words meaning boiled-spicy / sour salad-prawn. In particular central Thailand features extensive use of coconut milk and curry. Moreover Thai food also features a lot of rawness, when vegetables and shellfish are often consumed raw.
We had a very good serving of tom yam and raw shrimps in a Chinese-Thai restaurant in Sornthong (ศรทอง, Chinese: 頌通, Songtong), which is a fusion Thai-Chinese restaurant.
Getting There and Around
Very remote, drive. If you are just a casual visitor, then half-day visit; if you are a serious conservationist, the park deserves a few days of stay.
UNESCO Inscription
Stretching over more than 600,000 ha along the Myanmar border, the sanctuaries, which are relatively intact, contain examples of almost all the forest types of continental South-East Asia. They are home to a very diverse array of animals, including 77% of the large mammals (especially elephants and tigers), 50% of the large birds and 33% of the land vertebrates to be found in this region.
References
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