These islands are not known for their birds, but there are certainly species worth making the trip for. Ko Phi Phi is the only reliable place to see Frigatebirds in Thailand and they can provide a spectacle that won't be forgotten quickly. Other seabirds reguarly seen here are Black-naped Tern, White-bellied Sea Eagle and Bridled Tern and it would be worth keeping an eye out for Sheawaters, Petrels and Tropicbirds which have occasionally been reported.

The islands themselves hold some birds of interest with Pied Imperial Pigeon being one of the most attractive, but Black-nest Swiftlet is here too, which can be tricky to confidently identify. Nicobar Pigeon should be present on these islands but I have never heard of a report so perhaps they have been wiped out.

Getting to Ko Phi Phi is a simple affair due to the thriving tourist industry there. There are many travel agents that sell tickets for the boats that go a couple of times a day from Krabi with prices the same whichever company you choose; around 400baht return. For those that have money and like to travel in style speedboats can be chartered, again via travel agents, for something like 8000 baht.

To get to Krabi it depends where you are coming from on which mode of transport you will use. If coming from Bangkok by bus I would recommend taking one to Surat Thani from the Southern bus terminal and then taking an air conditioned mini bus to Krabi. Avoid a bus going to Krabi via the West coast and Phuket as the terrain is steep and the roads small, making for a lengthy journey. There are also regular buses from Hat Yai if arriving from Malaysia.

It is possible to travel from Bangkok to Surat Thani by train and then again taking a mini bus.

The most convenient, but most expensive, method of arrival is by plane. Krabi has a small airport about 10 kilometres from the town, and there are daily flights from Bangkok for about 3000 baht return.

Most people do not come to Ko Phi Phi for birdwatching, but the islands have the potential for a good number of species as there is still a lot of intact and fairly undisturbed forest here. However, most birders are here to see Frigatebirds, and these are easy to find near the two sea stacks beyond Ko Phi Phi Ley: Ko Pida Nork and Ko Pida Nai. Frigatebirds and the other seabirds that can beseen in this region are best observed by hiring a long-tailed boat and driver for 3-4 hours.

Black-nest Swiftlet exists here and seems to outnumber Germain's Swiftlet, if not displace it altogether. I saw plenty of Black-nests in the small bay protected by Ko Samah on Ko Phi Phi Ley. Look out for breeding Blue Rock Thrush too.

Viewpoint trails on Phi Phi Don : As far as I know no birders have walked along these trails to see what is present here. Presumably there should be a reasonable number of birds as the forest is quite intact and there is the possibility of finding something interesting, maybe Nicobar Pigeon? Given the number of migratory species that occur on other offshore islands in the region the potential for forest species along these trails is high.

Ko Samah : This tiny bay contained a number of birds when I was there at around 5 pm after all the other tourists had gone home. Black-nest Swiftlet was very obvious here and a few Blue Rock Thrushes were flitting from rock to rock. Collared Kingfisher was also present and a number of Pied Imperial Pigeons were easily seen coming in to roost on Ko Samah itself.

Apart from anything else this is a very pretty little spot, all the more so when one does not have to share it with lots of others, presumably it gets quite busy earlier in the day.

Ko Pida (Nork & Nai) : This area is an absolute must for bird watchers and is a well-documented hotspot for Frigatebirds. Lesser Frigatebird is seen by nearly all who take the trip in the winter months, but Christmas Island Frigatebird is also often encountered. Some people claim Great Frigatebird here too, but this can be extremely difficult to seperate from Christmas Island with confidence; make sure you don't jump to conclusions! I was taken here by a boatman who was very familiar with the habits of these birds and found a flock of well over 1000 birds way to the West of these islands shortly before dusk. This was an extremely memorable trip, read an account of it here: Ko Phi Phi trip Report.

Find a boatman at Ton Sai pier by asking them if they know Nok Jon Sa-Lat (this is Thai for Frigatebird) or click to see this in Thai script to print and show the boatmen: Frigatebird Thai Script. I was charged only 600 baht for this trip and the boatman was not concerned about how long we stayed out for.

This is an ideal place to relax and perhaps recover from the rigours of hot and sweaty jungle birding; I enjoy a trip here after slogging around the leech infested Khao Sok National Park before moving on to Khao Nor Chu Chi. It would be pointless for me to try and recommend anywhere to stay or eat as just about everything was destroyed by the tsunami of 26th December 2004, but I'm sure the whole place will be operational and receiving visitors as usual by now, but prices for accomodation are higher here than other parts of Thailand. Before the tsunami there were some very luxurious resorts here and I'm sure they have been reconstructed by now, so why not treat yourself to one of these? Ko Phi Phi Hotel Reservations.

Kingfishers, Bee-eaters & Rollers
This book details all of the kingfishers, bee-eaters and rollers of the world in a series of well-illustrated plates. With a wealth of kingfisher species in southern Thailand this is a really nice work of reference to have.

Birds of Thailand
This field guide has set new standards in identifying birds in the wild in Thailand. With the most up-to-date taxonomy of any publication this is the book you need if you are birdwatching in Thailand. Forget all of the older guides and buy this one.

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