Thailand is a country in Southeast Asia that is known to have strong cultural background. If you have ever visited Thailand, this country has elephants as the icons or symbols of some aspects. Elephant is also the country symbol of Thailand. Elephant is also one of the smartest animals in the world.
Beside elephant, Thailand is also a home for 10 percent of the world’s animals. You can find more than 250 mammal species, including the elephant, tigers, leopards, Malaysian sun bears and others. If you wish to see the native animals of Thailand, you can visit its forests and national parks as well.
Here’s the list of the 7 outstanding animals native to Thailand.
- Elephant
Let’s start with the animal that becomes the country symbol, the elephant. Elephants can be found all over Thailand. Despite the declining population of elephants in Thailand, you still can find this animal in the forests.
Compared to African elephants, Thailand elephants are much smaller. They are known to be majestic and playful, that’s why it is common to see elephant sanctuaries throughout the country.
If you visit this country, avoid riding on this animal as elaborated in side effects of riding elephant for itself.
- Tiger
The second animal native to Thailand is tiger. Most tigers in Thailand might be found in captivity, but if you are lucky enough, you will also find them in the wild.
Regarding to tigers population in Thailand, it keeps declining. There are less than 300 tigers to be found in the wild. The effort to increase their numbers is continuously done by the news that they have found to be breeding.
Meanwhile, captive tigers are the proofs of animal cruelty. They are also treated badly. If you visit Thailand, please think twice of visiting the places that offer tiger attractions.
- Binturong
Binturong is often referred as a bearcat since it resembles the appearance of it. You can say that binturong is the strange looking animal can be found in Thailand.
Binturongs are shy animals and proficient at climbing trees. No wonder, it is quite hard to spot them. However, there is an interesting fact about binturongs: their musk smells like popcorn!
- Pangolin
Pangolin is an animal with hard scales all over its body. Pangolins will curl their body into a ball as their defense mechanism. However, this defense mechanism enables them to escape easier from traffickers who smuggle them into China for traditional medicine.
That’s why the population of this animal is declining dramatically. But, if you are lucky enough, you might find out this cute creature once you visit Thailand.
- King Cobra
Who doesn’t know king cobra? It is one of the most venomous animals in the world. You won’t only find this animal in Thailand, but also in the other countries. It is one of the dangerous animals of China.
King cobra can be easily recognized by its snake hood below the head. King cobra can be found all over Thailand. However, meeting one will be frightening, though it will only attack once it is threatened. Though it is scary to look at king cobra, but it is considered as scary-looking harmless animals too.
- Bears
Though there aren’t too many bears can be found in Thailand, it is still a home for both Asian black and sun bears. The status of these two bears is vulnerable, they are almost endangered.
However, don’t worry, there are some foundations working hard to increase their population and educating others as well. If you wish to find bears in Thailand, you can consider visiting some tourist hotspots, such as Khao Sok national park in Surat Thani and Khao Yai national park.
- Tokay Gecko
Being the home of smaller lizards, Tokay gecko is one of the lizards inhabiting Thailand. The gecko is named that way because of its call (which sounds like “tokay”).
You can hear this call during the night in Thailand. Tokay geckos have beautiful color of body and they are worth to find. However, never try to handle one as they are able to bite, and won’t let go their bites without a fight.
If you plan to have gecko as a pet at home, you can see these inspiring decorations for your geckos terrarium.
Animals around the world are unique and various. Every country has its own animals that are native to it. Just like China, Australia and New Zealand. You can see animals native to Malaysia and you will see how great the animals are. Some animals are also native to several countries, just like king cobra.
We can almost see this animal in some country. If you wish to travel to Thailand, make sure you are familiar with these animals and read some cautions about them to prevent anything bad from happening. You don’t want your leisure time ended up in a hospital, do you?