Silver Pheasant— Photo: K. David Bishop

A perfect introduction to birds and natural history in one of the most exciting and diverse regions on earth—Southeast Asia. We visit a broad variety of habitats allowing us to experience a marvelous diversity of the fascinating Asian birdlife. Added attractions are the sensational food, fascinating culture, a myriad of incredible butterflies, and some very exciting mammals.

The Orient is a timeless land of ancient cultures, golden pagodas, and wonderful, little-known exotic birds. Thailand, situated at the crossroads of three biogeographic provinces, is the heartland of Southeast Asia. It hosts a remarkably diverse avifauna of well over 900 species, including some of the world's most beautiful birds. Also to be found there is a plethora of interesting mammals, reptiles, and amphibians, a number of which we shall see. On previous tours we have enjoyed encounters with white-handed gibbons, leopard (during the daytime!), the rarely observed slow loris, Asian elephant, and a variety of squirrels, including the spectacular cat-sized black giant squirrel.

This tour is an ideal introduction to the biological riches of Southeast Asia. From lovely accommodations and nurtured by exquisite food, we will explore nearby birding hot spots, including the lush lowland forests and deciduous woodlands of the renowned Kaeng Krachan and Khao Yai national parks, the montane forests of the far north in the foothills of the Himalayas, and the coastal marshes and limestone crags of the Kra Peninsula. Our tour is timed to coincide with the cooler, drier winter season when there are large numbers of Palearctic migrants present, in addition to the resident birds.

While the pheasants are perhaps the finest spectacle of any Oriental tour, there is a vast array of characteristic Southeast Asian birds that cannot fail to bedazzle the birdwatcher, including pigeons, parakeets, malkohas, trogons, hornbills, barbets, broadbills, pittas, minivets, bulbuls, leafbirds, spiderhunters, babblers (an exciting and delightful group), parrotbills, and the challenging Phylloscopus warblers.

Good to excellent accommodations; excellent (exquisite) food with a number of superbly catered meals in the field; travel by plane and comfortable minibus; easy to moderate terrain, mostly birding near our vehicle along roadsides, some moderate optional hiking; cool to warm and occasionally (at midday) hot weather; somewhat humid in the south but drier in the north, sometimes cold at high altitudes and in the early morning.