Thale Noi Non-Hunting Area
Location:	7°43'-8°00'N, 100°05'-l00°15'E; at the extreme northern end of Lake Songkhla, where the boundaries of the Provinces of Phatthalung, Songkhla and Nakhon Si Thammarat meet.
Area:	45,000 ha.
Altitude:	1-2m.
Biogeographical Province:	4.7.1.
Wetland type:	14, 18, 19 & 21.
Description of site:	A roughly circular lake, 5 km by 6 km, situated roughly one km to the north of the main part of Lake Songkhla. It is surrounded on three sides by areas of open swamp vegetation, sedge beds and rice paddies. An extensive area of Melaleuca swamp forest (4,220 ha) extends to the north. The village of Ban Thale Noi is situated on the western shore. The area of open water occupies 2,800 ha, roughly 60% of which is covered with floating or shallow-rooted aquatic vegetation. Grasslands and sedge beds cover 10,870 ha, and paddies 6,640 ha (Anon, 1981). The principal inflow to the lake is run-off from the steep slopes of the forested Banthad mountain range to the west. Outflow is via the Khlong Nong Riam and Khlong Yuan into Thale Luang, Lake Songkhla. While the lake is permanent, there may be fluctuations of up to 1.0m in depth, water levels usually reaching their minimum in August. The average depth during most of the year is 1.2m; this declines to less than l.0m during the driest months. The lake is normally fresh to slightly saline (1.48 p.p.t.). At times of low water level during the driest months, some saline water enters the lake from Lake Songkhla, and the salinity may rise to a maximum of 3.5 p.p.t. The pH varies spatially and seasonally from 1.2-8.1 (average 4.4). The northern end, which lies in proximity to the Melaleuca swamp forest, is more acid than the south. The acidity increases during the rainy season as organic matter from acid humus leaches into the lake. Detailed information on the water regime of the entire basin may be found in Sinclair et al. (1985).
Climatic conditions:	Tropical monsoonal climate with an average annual rainfall of 2,162 mm, most of which falls during the northeast monsoon, from October to December. The average relative humidity is 79%. The mean annual temperature is 27.4°C; the maximum mean monthly temperature is 28.5°C in March, and the minimum, 26.5°C in November.
Principal vegetation:	The principal species of floating and emergent plants are Eleocharis, Hanguana, Nymphoides, Nymphaea and Nelumbo, together with much Salvinia and Azolla. There are some beds of Phragmites sp along the northern shore. Adjacent marshy flats support extensive beds of Phragmites, Scirpus mucronatus, Cyperus grossus, together with patches of Eleocharis and Melaleuca. The Melaleuca woodland is a secondary formation which has presumably replaced a more diverse swamp forest in which Alstonia spathulata was co-dominant; a few Alstonia trees are still present. There are rice paddies and rubber plantations in the adjacent lowlands, and small areas of degraded evergreen forest on limestone or other outcrops.
Land tenure:	The wetland is state owned and open to public use; surrounding areas are mainly private small-holdings.
Conservation measures taken:	The entire area is incorporated within the Thale Noi Non-Hunting Area. The Melaleuca forest has the status of National Reserve Forest, so that cutting is forbidden in law.
Conservation measures proposed:	The preparation of a management plan for Thale Noi has been proposed with a view to the possible upgrading of the whole or parts of the area to Wildlife Sanctuary or National Parks status (Sinclair et al., 1985). Protection of wildlife and habitats should be improved. There should be better monitoring of rare breeding species such as Mycteria leucocephala. Artificial nest platforms for this species should be considered, since the small colony is said to be prevented from increasing because of a shortage of suitable large Alstonia nesting trees. Muddy scrapes might be constructed in areas surrounding the lake in order to increase their attractiveness to migrant shorebirds.
Land use:	Fishing with gill nets, traps and electrocution methods. Aquatic vegetation is harvested for cattle fodder, and Scirpus mucronatus is planted and harvested for weaving as matting etc. The principal activities in surrounding areas are cultivation of rice (one crop of wet-season rice per year), cattle grazing and charcoal production.
Possible changes in land use:	The proposed salinity barrier on adjacent Lake Songkhla may raise the water levels throughout Thale Noi. There has also been a proposal to construct a major new highway across the site, from Hua Sai to Thale Noi, although this has, for the moment, been shelved, partly because of the opposition of the government's Wildlife Conservation Division. It is possible that parts of the area will be developed for agriculture under the Phru Khuan Khreng Swamp Development Project.
Disturbances and threats:	Threats are posed by current development proposals (see above), by continued clearance of Melaleuca for charcoal production, and by the burning or removal of swamp vegetation. There is still some illegal hunting of wildlife, and the eggs and young of Mycteria and other larger waterbirds are frequently taken for food. Fishermen kill otters Lutra sp. A large volume of untreated solid and liquid waste enters the lake from villages on the lake shore. Pesticide levels in the lake are reportedly high although the reliability of the data is questionable (Sinclair et al., 1985). No data are available on the possible threat to waterfowl posed by the massive amount of discarded nylon fishing net in the lake.
Economic and social values:	Villagers derive considerable income from the fishery, from utilizing aquatic plants and from the capture and sale of snakes. There were twelve snake dealers in Ban Thalae Noi in 1982 (J. Nabhitabhata, pers. comm.). The lake has great potential for tourism, and although it already receives approximately 100,000 visitors per year, its amenity value could be greatly increased with better management and information services.
Fauna:	The lake supports the endangered catfish Prophagorus nieuhofi. One hundred and eighty-six species of birds are listed for Thale Noi (Anon, 1981). The lake and its marshes are the most important area within the entire Lake Songkhla basin for waterfowl. They support the only remaining breeding colony of Mycteria leucocephala in Thailand. Up to 17 individuals were reported in 1978-79, of which no more than about four or five pairs bred (R. Dobias pers. comm.). Although the species is still present, there appears to be no recent information on numbers. Leptoptilos javanicus is an occasional visitor and flocks of up to 20 Threskiornis melanocephalus have been recorded. The lake is also one of very few breeding sites in Thailand for Ardea purpurea the number of breeding pairs is not known, but concentrations of up to 1,000 birds have been claimed (Anon, 1981). Up to one thousand Egretta spp occur in winter, but it is not known whether any breed. Both Dendrocygna javanica and Nettapus coromandelianus breed in the area, and concentrations of up to 10,000 and 20,000 respectively have been reported (Anon, 1981). Several species occur which are primarily associated with wooded habitats and which are of particular conservation significance; these include Ichthyophaga ichthyaetus, Treron fulvicollis, Rhyticeros undulatus and Ketupa ketupu. Otters Lutra sp are said to be present, and the River Terrapin Batagur baska may still occur. This latter species, the eggs and meat of which were formerly harvested for food, is considered close to extinction in Thailand (Bain & Humphrey, 1982).
Special floral values:	The site may contain the largest patch of Melaleuca woodland in Thailand.
Research and facilities:	Accommodation and boat transportation are available at the headquarters of the Thale Noi Non-Hunting Area. The site has been visited by large numbers of bird-watchers, some of whom have filed their records at the Association for the Conservation of Wildlife in Bangkok.
References:	Anon (1981); Ban & Humphrey (1982); Sinclair et al. (1985); Storer (1977).
Criteria for inclusion:	1b, 1e, 2a, 2b, 3a.
Source:	Jira Jintanugool and Philip D. Round.