Wild Life On Samui

[churchill]

Monkey , deer and wild boar amongst others - although I have never seen any as the local's will eat anything that moves !

Wildlife should be protected on Samui , it would be fantastic to see these animals increase in numbers so that they are occasionally seen !

[lazeeboy]

lived on samui for 13 years ,have never seen a wild monkey only tame ones

[churchill]

Yes - I agree but they are there - somewhere ! , but scared off by all the building , construction and by locals shooting anything that moves !

[sbk]

Really? You don't think it might have more to do with the 100,000 plus non-local Thai and Burmese workers living on the island than with the 50,000 or so actual local Thais?

I know on this island that once huge numbers of Isaan workers and illegal Burmese arrived, the squirrel rate dropped drastically. God only knows what's happened to the less visible wildlife but I suspect, aside from the deer, which are the King's deer and protected (do the migrant workers know this? the locals certainly do and do not kill them) the migrant workers hunt everything else too.

Its interesting how, before the arrival of hordes of migrant workers, the wildlife population remained fairly stable yet locals are blamed for their more recent demise.

[churchill]

i don't see that it really matters who is hunting these animals - But it would be nice if it could be stopped somehow and enforced by law !

[sbk]

Education would help, but I don't see that changing Isaan eating habits anytime soon. What solution would you come up with? How would you enforce it?

[Boo]

The locals should be taking control of the problem but obviously don't seem tooo bothered about it either so don't think that farang will be able to make much impact.

[sbk]

Well, I know that locals here haven't had much success keeping people off their property. Short of shooting trespassers, I am not sure what they could do?

Surely it is up to the Foresty department (which is not a local govt organization) to protect wildlife in the national parks?

[Boo]

Dunno but presumably the migrant workers are brought in by locals to work on building local land/business etc so some of the responsibilty to resolve the problem (or make a much bigger issue to the Forestry dept) should lay with locals too imo. Either that or dry up the work for them by using local labour, that way they will soon move on to where they can make a living & the poaching should stop too.

[sbk]

Not very practical on an island that makes its living from tourism. I like the idea, don't get me wrong, but I can't possibly see how Samui or even Phangan and Tao could sustain the numbers of tourists that they have based on work of the local population alone.

Have to add that is a bit difficult to apply , especially when considering that, at least on this island, the ones who have to contend with the poaching on their property are usually not the ones employing migrant laborers.

[Rooo]

Well, I know that locals here haven't had much success keeping people off their property. Short of shooting trespassers, I am not sure what they could do?

Surely it is up to the Foresty department (which is not a local govt organization) to protect wildlife in the national parks?

SBK,

My neighbour, just got 20 wild chickens as he calls them,30 squirrels & some feral pigs . He relesed them back on his land.

Let me tell you , he is not the shy type to use a shotgun.

God help me if I try to interfere with them attacking the garden,but the the 2 eagles that fly over everyday mght help me.

[mssabai]

The local Samuians I work with are all partial to a bit of squirrel. Is it fair just to blame migrant workers? The Burmese and Isaan are so often used as an easy scape goat for pretty much any problems that you come across in these (and other parts of Thailand), just as migrants are all across the world. If it is in fact true then I think the bigger issue is what are the companies that provide such a low standard of living that these people are forced to hunt their own animals in the wild? I have heard so many horror stories from Burmese workers about their conditions here that I for one wouldn't blame them if they did!

[Nirvana]

The local Samuians I work with are all partial to a bit of squirrel. Is it fair just to blame migrant workers? The Burmese and Isaan are so often used as an easy scape goat for pretty much any problems that you come across in these (and other parts of Thailand), just as migrants are all across the world. If it is in fact true then I think the bigger issue is what are the companies that provide such a low standard of living that these people are forced to hunt their own animals in the wild? I have heard so many horror stories from Burmese workers about their conditions here that I for one wouldn't blame them if they did!

Agree and it is not just migrant workers, have seen our neighbours happily eat , squirrels, snakes, frogs and just about anything else that crosses their path. Also noisy dogs that we have fed before which are great , have just disappeared over night apparently poisioned because they bark at night. Trees are torn down without a care, its all part of a wider problem, depending on which way you look at it. For myself personally I would like to preserve as much as possible.

[sbk]

I guess you missed my point. Sure, locals eat squirrel, but when the local population was small the hunting was sustainable. It is the huge numbers of migrant workers constantly hunting that are wiping out wildlife. Yes, I understand they have to eat, yes I understand that many are paid a pittance, but you can't triple the population and not have an effect on everything. However, I am not the one who brought this issue up, I am merely the one pointing out that solely blaming locals for eating them all is probably not the right place to be pointing fingers.

[Wellington]

Monkey , deer and wild boar amongst others - although I have never seen any as the local's will eat anything that moves !

Wildlife should be protected on Samui , it would be fantastic to see these animals increase in numbers so that they are occasionally seen !

Monkeys can be dangerous and will attack humans in some circumstances so are best left to the coconut pickers who know how to control them.

Wild boar are shy and keep to the deepest parts of the forest, so are unlikely to be seen ,certainly not near human habitation,and deer, I've not seen deer on Samui, but they can still be seen in parts of the National Parks on the mainland.

It is a pity that Samui is losing it's natural wildlife but I can see no solution when you get the attitude,as we had at our house in Ban Tai several years ago, that when we had cashews ripe or mushrooms a horde of Thais would arrive and we had an invasion; what do you do if they don't even respect private property?

And catching and killing endangered species is the norm.

[MSingh]

I wonder about Reptilian species ??

I heard stories about big Pythons being in the Villages in Lamai behind the Temple & also on Monkey theatre Rd, BP years ago ( within 5 years though.

Surely they can't be any more ?

I still see fairly big Monitors in Bophut but worry about the ones in the River with the new Construction..

Edited February 8, 2008 by MSingh

[Wellington]

I wonder about Reptilian species ??

I heard stories about big Pythons being in the Villages in Lamai behind the Temple & also on Monkey theatre Rd, BP years ago ( within 5 years though.

Surely they can't be any more ?

I still see fairly big Monitors in Bophut but worry about the ones in the River with the new Construction..

Two pythons were found in our neighbouring forest last year, one 4 m.long and wide with it!, beautiful animal.

and we had cobras in our Samui garden;

You want to see the Monitors in Lumpini Park Lake; I've never seen bigger, don't swim there!

[Lite Beer]

Yes, I understand they have to eat,

Then why cant they go to Tesco and buy a chicken like every one else.

Edited February 8, 2008 by Lite Beer

[Nirvana]

I guess you missed my point. Sure, locals eat squirrel, but when the local population was small the hunting was sustainable. It is the huge numbers of migrant workers constantly hunting that are wiping out wildlife. Yes, I understand they have to eat, yes I understand that many are paid a pittance, but you can't triple the population and not have an effect on everything. However, I am not the one who brought this issue up, I am merely the one pointing out that solely blaming locals for eating them all is probably not the right place to be pointing fingers.

guess you missed my point. i am not solely blaming locals or migrant workers.

[sbk]

Yes, I understand they have to eat,

Then why cant they go to Tesco and buy a chicken like every one else.

Perhaps they don't get paid enough to buy chicken from tesco and send money home. Why not ask some guy you see out hunting next time why he doesn't go buy food instead of hunt and kill?

[MSingh]

Yes, I understand they have to eat,

Then why cant they go to Tesco and buy a chicken like every one else.

Perhaps they don't get paid enough to buy chicken from tesco and send money home. Why not ask some guy you see out hunting next time why he doesn't go buy food instead of hunt and kill?

Is the correct answer..

2 Pongolin's were seen drinking from a Friend of mine's Swimming Pool in Lamai about a year ago, he has a place which virtually borders the Mountain & Jungle, they're like an Armadillo kind of Animal..

[Eric1949]

Yes, I understand they have to eat,

Then why cant they go to Tesco and buy a chicken like every one else.

Perhaps they don't get paid enough to buy chicken from tesco and send money home. Why not ask some guy you see out hunting next time why he doesn't go buy food instead of hunt and kill?

Is the correct answer..

2 Pongolin's were seen drinking from a Friend of mine's Swimming Pool in Lamai about a year ago, he has a place which virtually borders the Mountain & Jungle, they're like an Armadillo kind of Animal..

Best place to see wild animals in these parts is at the full moon party.

[Tony121]

The reason they prefer wild animals to chickens is because wild animal's are more of a treat to them one builder I knew found a baby owl, I told him I would buy him any food he wanted like a good steak and money and he was not interested he wanted to eat the owl and that was it.

[koheesti]

I've heard two stories each about a farang who sees a monitor lizard, tells a Thai, then said Thai proceeds to hunt for it with the intention of eating it. Apparently it "tastes just like chicken".

[MSingh]

I saw nets in the River this morning in Bophut where i used to regulary see the Monitors but haven't seen any for 2 months, i doubt they could escape the nets even if they're only meant for Fish..

[Bluebell]

Used to regularly see two Monitors (3-4 feet long) in the hillside area behind Bophut Temple and Sunday's Resort. Occasionally saw them in my garden.....beautiful creatures. Not seen them for a few weeks now sadly...probably now no more!

[ClaudeFeller]

We had three beautiful pythons in the last six months - couldnt move away because they ate one or two chicken. Well, no one survived, the local Thais said: "Dangerous for small children". Cobras are more clever, they dont like to come to close to populated areas.

[Wellington]

The reason they prefer wild animals to chickens is because wild animal's are more of a treat to them one builder I knew found a baby owl, I told him I would buy him any food he wanted like a good steak and money and he was not interested he wanted to eat the owl and that was it.

That is sooooo disgusting.

[MSingh]

Used to regularly see two Monitors (3-4 feet long) in the hillside area behind Bophut Temple and Sunday's Resort. Occasionally saw them in my garden.....beautiful creatures. Not seen them for a few weeks now sadly...probably now no more!

That's where i was talkign about where the Net is on the Bridge there.

I saw one there about maybe 2 months ago the last time.

I saw one yesterday afternoon too in Bophut on the Road where the new Family Mart is, drive down there towatrds those 2 swamps on either side of the road & one was on a side road, i saw it as i was on my Motorbike, drove on butt urned around & unfortunately a Car was pulling in & by the time i had gone round there it had gone because of the Cra but i am 99.999% sure it was one..

[MSingh]

We had three beautiful pythons in the last six months - couldnt move away because they ate one or two chicken. Well, no one survived, the local Thais said: "Dangerous for small children". Cobras are more clever, they dont like to come to close to populated areas.

No offence to the Locals but i'm sure their education where Reptilian species are concerned, is a bit limited to say the least.Ok maybe a fully grown, very big Python would be a danger to Children, i've even read the stories of Captive ones of 12ft plus eating teh Kid in Colorado if my memory serves me right, but under that, i very much doubt they'd even second glance a Human..

Anaonda's on the other hand.........