Bueng Boraphet (, , lit. "
giloy swamp") is the largest
freshwater
Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. The term excludes seawater and brackish water, but it does include non-salty mi ...
swamp
A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in ...
and
lake
A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from ...
in
central Thailand
Central Thailand (Central Plain) (historically also known as Siam or Dvaravati) is one of the regions of Thailand, covering the broad alluvial plain of the Chao Phraya River. It is separated from northeast Thailand (Isan) by the Phetchabun Mount ...
. It covers an area of 224 km
2 east of
Nakhon Sawan
Nakhon Sawan (, ) is a city (''thesaban nakhon'') in Thailand. The name literally means "Heavenly City". The city is the capital of Nakhon Sawan province, and covers the complete subdistrict (''tambon'') of Pak Nam Pho and parts of Khwae Yai, Nak ...
, south of the
Nan River
The Nan River (, , ; , ) is a river in Thailand. It is one of the most important tributaries of the Chao Phraya River.
Geography
The Nan River originates in the Luang Prabang Range, Nan Province. The provinces along the river after Nan Prov ...
close to its confluence with the
Ping River
The Ping River (, , ; , ) along with the Nan River, is one of the two main tributaries of the Chao Phraya River. It originates at Doi Thuai in the Daen Lao Range, in Chiang Dao district, Chiang Mai province. After passing Chiang Mai, it flows th ...
. This swamp can be seen from the train window between Bueng Boraphet and Thap Krit stations on the
Northern railway line.
Originally the area was covered by a large swamp, which was flooded in 1930 with the building of a dam to improve fishing.
This is the only known site for the
white-eyed river martin which used to winter there, but has not been seen since 1980, and may be extinct.
[ p86-88]
Once in the past
Siamese tiger perch had been considered the most famous fish species here, until it was said that ''"If anyone comes to Bueng Borapet and doesn't eat this species of fish it is as if that person has never arrived"''. But now it is probably completely extinct in Bueng Boraphet, from being caught too much, both for consumption and for trade in the aquarium fish industry.
A
near-threatened species
A near-threatened species is a species which has been categorized as "Near Threatened" (NT) by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as that may be vulnerable to endangerment in the near future, but it does not currently qu ...
, the
marsh grassbird, was first discovered in Thailand here in early December 2019.
One hundred and six square kilometres of the lake were declared a non-hunting area in 1975. In 2000 it was designated a wetland of international importance by the Thai government.
wetlands.org
Location
References
External links
Boraphet
Non-hunting areas of Thailand
Geography of Nakhon Sawan province
Protected areas established in 1975
1975 establishments in Thailand
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