Jan 2020
Behind the crowed tourist beaches, Thailand has lots of quiet wildlife left for the rarer nature-lovers. The SW coastal region is harsh, subject to tidal cycles requiring mangroves, which must be replanted manually, to support a complex food chain in the waters and at land, from fish and corals to shellfish, deer and monkeys. The steep rocks attract ultimate mountaineers while locals continue collecting bird nests in remote caves, or in a durable variety artificial nesting building in a converted fishery town. The Andaman Sea is among the richest in the world, starring Siamese fighter fish, cnidarians in complex symbiosis and even pink dolphins. The southern lagoons provide most of the country's favorite food, fish, from marshes kept open by elephants and water buffaloes.