Wildlife
Mammals: More than 70 mammal species have been recorded in Khao Yai. These include larger species like elephants, sambar deer, barking deer, gaur, civets, porcupines, wild boars, gibbons, macaques, wild dogs and tigers.
Sambar deer are the easiest animals to spot in Khao YaiThe easiest animals to spot are the deer grazing on the grasslands. The sambar deer are the larger variety that often graze in groups. They are generally not concerned by the presence of humans and in fact some of them are very bold and will approach people for food. You should not feed the animals. The barking deer are smaller and are usually alone or in pairs. They are more skittish than the sambar deer and will flee if approached.
Khao Yai has the largest population of wild elephants in all of Thailand but they are not always easy to find. You may see them in the evening at the salt-licks and sometimes you will see them on the roads as you drive in or out.
The Gaur are large curved horned herbivores that look a little like wildebeest. They are nocturnal animals but are occasionally seen in the grasslands during the day.
Cheeky little macaque monkeys are often the first wildlife visitors meetYou can often here the strange calls of the gibbons in the forest but they are not always easy to see. If you are a quiet walker you can spot these apes swinging in the trees. The more common macaque monkeys are much easier to spot and will boldly approach people for food. They often reside around the places people gather such as campsites and waterfalls.
There is a cave that has over 1 million bats. It is just outside the park, 3km north of the Pak Chong entrance.
You will be very fortunate to see a tiger. Even many of the park rangers have never seen one of these reclusive creatures. The occasional find of tiger droppings is the main evidence that a few tigers do still haunt this area. However a few patient visitors do get fleeting glimpses of these magnificent creatures from the watchtowers as they prowl through the grasslands.
Birds: The park has more than 300 species of birds. Some of them are migratory and others resident all year round. The park has four species of endangered hornbills. Other rare species include the Red-headed Trogon, Golden-fronted Leafbird, Large Cuckooshrike, Verditer Flycatcher and Minivet.
There are also Hill and Common Myna birds that can mimic human voices. There are colourful Little Pippas and Siamese Firebacks. There are also hunting birds such as falcons.
The most popular bird watching sites are in the jungle near the two campsites. Grassland and water fowl can be seen from Nong Pak Chi Watching Tower.
Reptiles: Reptiles are animals that have epidermal scales, breathe with lungs and lay eggs on land. In Khao Yai there are 53 recorded species of reptiles. There are many snakes including reticulated pythons, cobras, cat snakes and bronzebacks. Snakes do not attack people unless they feel threatened but you should be careful when stepping through undergrowth. If you see a snake you should assume it is dangerous unless you know better. There are also monitor lizards, skinks, water-dragons and freshwater crocodiles.
Amphibians: Amphibians are the animals that can live both in water and on land. They have skin, not scales or fur, lay their eggs in water and their babies are born with gills. In Khao Yai there are 18 recorded species of amphibians including tree frogs, paddy frogs, grass frogs and bullfrogs.
Insects: The number of species of insect in Khao Yai is virtually uncountable. There are around 5,000 species of butterfly. The Cicadas rarely stop their incessant background jungle humming.