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A Brief Guide to Some of the Animal Species in Thailand

The SE Asian tropics of Thailand are home to a vast range of animal, aquatic, and amphibian species (not to mention insects).

To put this a little more into perspective in terms of actual numbers, about one-tenth of the world’s animal and bird species live in Thailand – more than the numbers in both America and Europe combined! (Obviously it is not only humans from cold countries who are attracted to the idea of living in warm weather!) 

Due to the fact that Thailand is a tropical region, many of these creatures are likely to seem somewhat on the exotic, or even scary side to visitors from other climes – especially the larger versions of species normally found in their own countries such as the cockroaches, which are able to scare the living daylights out of many a visitor who has never encountered such a seemingly giant-sized insect!

Some (usually first-time) visitors to ‘the land of smiles’ are likely to encounter a few other surprises when they first land, even in the cities — or in terms of scavengers like cockroaches and rats, which seem to go where humans go — especially in cities.

For most people the initial shocking encounters with other, non-human life forms occur within close proximity (i.e. in their room) and are most likely to be not only the huge cockroaches (which can fly as well and sometimes drop in through the window) but also the small lizards known as geckos.

Image sourced from creativecommons.org

These little blighters may put the willies up anyone who has never encountered them before, but they are actually your friend as they kindly hoover up some of the many, many ants that are also everywhere in Thailand.

So if you are planning a trip to Thailand – especially a first-time trip – then be aware that there are ants of various sizes pretty much everywhere in the country (including, in some areas, the nasty big red ones that bite – yeeoouch!). This will include your room, kitchen, and just about everywhere else you go, including most eateries.

And if you find yourself running to the staff in your hotel or condo that there are ants in your place – don’t be surprised if you are met with blank looks!

So there are some huge creatures and some tiny ones that are counted among Thailand’s strange and exotic range of wildlife species both on land and in the water, with the smallest of all being the bumblebee bat, which is literally the size of a bumblebee.

The largest is a fish called the whale shark, which comes in at around the size of a bus when fully grown. Don’t worry if you fancy doing a little diving while in the warm tropical waters though, as these sharks don’t attack and rip apart their prey like other species, nor do they attack humans. In fact, they feed largely on plankton, fish eggs and shrimps. (More on the whale shark later.)

Along with over-sized insects, snakes, rats, and aquatic life, there are also copious numbers of monkeys and elephants in Thailand, along with a fairly long and growing list of rare and endangered species.

Anyway – aside from the copious amounts of insects and rats that form part of the scenery in Thailand, here we go with our brief guide to a few of the other more interesting animal species in Thailand, some of which may be a little more difficult to catch a glimpse of. Some of these species are commonly-known, while others, sadly, have already become endangered and are only really to be found in national parks.

Mammals

Elephants

Elephants are often associated with Thailand, and have served as symbols of a variety of things for the Thais for aeons. In fact, the elephant is considered as the country’s ‘national animal’.

Image sourced from creativecommons.org

There are around 5,000 elephants of the Indian variety in Thailand now (half of which are domesticated), although these are relatively small numbers compared to around 100 years back, when there would have been more like 100,000, with one-fifth of them being wild.

And although many people take a ride on an elephant as an endearing and memorable part of their visit to Thailand, there are now serious ethical issues constantly being raised in relation to this and other activities connected to these creatures in Thailand – especially the ‘domesticated’ ones which are often involved in shows where they do tricks and such like.

After being investigated by animal rights groups who have found that the elephants often undergo immense cruelty during their ‘training’ there are now more people unwilling to ride them. Thankfully there are a few elephant reserves like the one in Phuket that rescues them and lets them wander round the complex without any interference and definitely no passengers.

Cats

Thailand is believed to be where Siamese cats originated from. There were apparently 23 different breeds of Siamese felines at one point, but now only 6 remain. These cats were traditionally considered as good wedding presents in Thailand.

Image by rick truter sourced from wikimedia commons

Also in wild areas and nature reserves such as Khao Yai National Park, another cat species known as a fishing cat can be found.

This animal is a medium sized wildcat that looks similar to a small leopard, and, as the name implies, these cats love to fish. This is actually now classified as an endangered species, so your best chance of encountering one is likely to be along one of the many rivers or streams in the park.

Image by Chat_pecheur_zoo from wikimedia commons

Monkeys

There are lots of monkeys in Thailand too, and in some populated areas such as the town of Lopburi, the monkey populations are more concentrated than in the wild. Lopburi is actually famous for its monkeys, which live in and around the town in fairly close proximity to people, and Lopburi even has a monkey festival at the Pra Prang Sam Yot temple in the town.

Image by vyacheslav argenberg sourced from wikimedia commons

Some of the monkeys in Thailand are now becoming endangered, such as the white-handed gibbon.

In Thailand’s Northern capital of Chiang Mai there is actually a gibbon rehabilitation reserve known as ‘Flight of the Gibbon’, which was started after the owners of this attraction found a pair of Thailand these gibbons in a cage, and then set them free in the area.

The reserve has ziplines which enable visitors to catch glimpses of these beautiful primates by swinging through the treetops with them, which is an amazing experience itself.

Wild Guar

Located just outside of Khao Yai National Park is an area known as Wang Nam Khiao.

This place is home to Thai wild guar, a kind of rare bison which is the tallest species of wild cattle in the country. This is another endangered animal, hence it is not that easy to spot, but if you can get up to the nearby area around Khao Phaeng Ma Mountain, there are actually herds of around 100 of these beasts roaming around in relative peace.

Image by Mohammad Abuzar sourced from wikimedia commons

Bears

There aren’t actually that many to be found these days, but Thailand is a habitat to various bear varieties, most notably the Asian black bear and the sun bear.

These particular bears are not currently considered as critically endangered, but their status is somewhat vulnerable as populations decrease along with their natural habitats. Thankfully, there are several foundations in Thailand whose aim is to try and ensure that existing bear populations increase.

Image by Dr. Raju Kasambe sourced from wikimedia commons

The majority of the bear population in the country is found nationwide, but like some of the other animals featured here, they are most likely to be spotted in one of the national parks like Khao Sok in the North-eastern Surat Thani, and Khao Yai national park in the Thai south.

Binturong

The Binturong is a strange but cute-looking creature native to SE Asia that is sometimes called a bearcat due to its similarity to both of the animals.

Image by by Ilham.nurwansah from sourced from wikimedia commons

Although Binturongs have not actually been that difficult to find in the past, they are now classified as vulnerable due to population decline over the last few decades. The animals are also highly proficient tree-scalers which makes them a little hard to spot even if you manage to locate them.

Pangolin

Pangolins look a little like anteaters, and are sometimes confused with armadillos. Although they do indeed eat ants, they have hard scales all over their body, and are not related species.

Image by Piekfrosch sourced from wikimedia commons

Their only defence mechanism is to curl into a ball, hedgehog-style, and release an off-putting odour from a gland in their tail.

Unfortunately though, this has proven insufficient protection against traffickers, who apparently catch them with relative ease and then smuggle them into China where they are used as part of a traditional medicine formula.

Somewhat unsurprisingly, their numbers have plummeted in recent decades, but if you’re out in the wilds for any reason you might happen across one of these strange-looking but cute creatures.

Reptiles

Crocodiles

There are a few crocodiles in Thailand, although thankfully not too many in populated areas. Having said that, it has been known for them to be found wandering around the streets of Bangkok on occasion after the heavy flooding that comes with the rainy season!

On the outskirts of Bangkok in Samut Prakarn (now accessible by the BTS skytrain) can be found a ‘Crocodile Farm’ (farm jarokae), which is a little like a cross between a zoo and a wildlife reserve and provides the opportunity for visitors not only to feed the crocodiles (with raw meat attached to a fishing line) but also to try crocodile meat in the farm restaurant (!).

Image sourced from wikimedia commons

Again there are a few varieties of endangered species on the crocodile list, namely the Siamese crocodile. This fresh water croc is identified by its wide, smooth snout, and it can grow up to more than 2.0 metres long. Probably the best chance of catching a glimpse of this magnificent-looking reptile is along the banks of the Phetchaburi river, where it nests, or in some of the national parks.

Lizards

From the humble, ant-eating geckos found pretty much everywhere, to the giant monitor lizards, a tropical country like Thailand is rife with an assortment of lizard species.

Image by ekeidar sourced from wikimedia commons

The huge monitor lizards that are quite often mistaken for crocodiles, especially when sliding in or out of water, live not only in the wild but also in some of the main parks in Bangkok (with water) such as Lumpinee Park and the Train Park (Suan Rot Fai) in Chatuchak.

Snakes

If slithery things are not your thing then you might want to consider that there are plenty of snakes in Thailand.

Many are harmless grass snakes and such like, although there are a few poisonous ones that do look like the simple green grass snakes that can be seen in and around trees in the parks in Bangkok.

Image by Michael Allen Smith sourced from wikimedia commons

Some of the snakes in Thailand tend to be of the large variety as well though, such as the reticulated python (which is actually the largest snake in the world), and the longest poisonous snake in the world, the King Cobra, can also be found here– although thankfully not in the parks in populated areas.

In the water

Manta rays

 is popular in Thailand, especially in the crystal-blue waters of the southern regions of the country. 

Many divers in these waters have been lucky enough to get the opportunity to swim alongside these majestic giants of the water, which proves to be an unforgettable experience for them.

Image by Ken Funakoshi sourced from wikimedia commons

Some manta rays reach up to seven meters in length, and the best places to try and catch them are the  off the west coast of Thailand.

Whale sharks

There are a few varieties of whale and dolphin species in Thailand, but whale sharks are often considered the most amazing of them all.

This is because of their sheer size, coupled with the fact that they are completely harmless. They are apparently not that difficult to find in some regions of Thai waters, and again some divers have had the experience of swimming alongside these amazing-looking sea-dwellers.

Image by Arturo de Frias Marquesage sourced from wikimedia commons

Diving is again the best way to get a glimpse of the whale sharks, and for may divers, swimming alongside one of these gigantic, silent creatures is an unforgettable, once-in-a-lifetime experience.