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Doi Inthanon National Park

Coordinates: 18°35′32″N 98°29′12″E / 18.59222°N 98.48667°E / 18.59222; 98.48667
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Doi Inthanon National Park
อุทยานแห่งชาติดอยอินทนนท์
The Wachirathan Waterfall, Doi Inthanon National Park, the highest point in Thailand
Map
LocationChom Thong District, Chiang Mai Province, Thailand
Coordinates18°35′32″N 98°29′12″E / 18.59222°N 98.48667°E / 18.59222; 98.48667
Area482 km2 (186 sq mi)
Established2 October 1972 [1]
Visitors874,372 (in 2019)
Governing bodyDepartment of National Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP)

Doi Inthanon National Park (Thai: อุทยานแห่งชาติดอยอินทนนท์),[2] nicknamed "the roof of Thailand", is a national park in the Thanon Thong Chai Range, Chom Thong District, Chiang Mai Province, northern Thailand.[3] It includes Doi Inthanon, the country's highest mountain. It contains an area of 301,184 rai ~ 482 square kilometres (186 sq mi) in size.[4] It was established on October 2, 1972.[1]

Pin of the highest point of Thailand in Doi Inthanon National Park
The Wachirathan Waterfall in Doi Inthanon National Park

Geography

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The park is approximately 60 kilometres (37 mi) from Chiang Mai. It includes Karen and Meo Hmong villages of about 4,500 people.[5] Its elevation ranges between 800–2,565 metres (2,625–8,415 ft). Within its borders are a number of waterfalls: Mae Klang Falls, Wachiratan Falls, Siriphum Falls, and Mae Ya Falls.[3] The park has varied climatic and ecologically different sections.

Doi Inthanon National Park is located in a significant part of the Ping River watershed area, which has allowed numerous rivers to be formed, The Mae Wang, Mae Klang River, Maw Ya River, Mae Hoi River, Mae Chaem River, and Mae Tia Rivers being the most important one in the district.[6] These rivers will allow multiple local settlements in Chang Mai Province to be nourished before flowing into the Ping River.[6]

Flora

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Flora includes evergreen cloud forest, sphagnum bog, and deciduous dipterocarp forest.[4] There are some relict pines.[3]

Plant communities of Doi Inthanon vary according to elevation. Below is a table of main plants by vegetation type:[7]

Vegetation type Elevation Trees Understorey (undergrowth, shrubs, herbs, etc.)
mixed deciduous forests up to 800 m Albizia, Dalbergia, Millettia, Vitex, Terminalia, Lagerstroemia Boesenbergia, Curcuma, Globba, Kaempferia
deciduous dipterocarp forests 600–800 m Dipterocarpus intricatus, Dipterocarpus obtusifolius, Dipterocarpus tuberculatus, Shorea obtusa, Shorea siamensis, Strychnos nux-vomica, Colona floribunda Arundinaria
pine deciduous dipterocarp forests 800–1,200 m Pinus latteri, Pinus kesiya, Dipterocarpus obtusifolius, Dipterocarpus tuberculatus, Shorea obtusa, Anneslea fragrans, Schima wallichii, Ternstroemia gymnanthera, Helicia nilagirica, Wendlandia tinctoria, Engelhardia spicata Viburnum, Buddleja asiatica, Desmodium, Crotalaria, Indigofera; Hypoxis aurea, Murdannia, Iris collettii, Gentiana, Polygala, Senecio
seasonal rain forests (dry evergreen forests) up to 900 m Aglaia spp., Aphanamixis polystachya, Dysoxylum andamanicum, Acrocarpus fraxinifolius, Erythrina spp., Adenanthera pavonina, Syzygium spp., Choerospondias axillaris, Dracontomelon dao, Dimocarpus longan, Nephelium hypoleucum, Paranephelium xestophyllum, Sapindus rarak Ixora, Tarenna, Capparis spp., Antidesma spp.; Luvunga scandens, Desmos chinensis, Artabotrys siamensis, Mucuna macrocarpa, Entada, Derris, Dalbergia; Alpinia, Boesenbergia, Curcuma, Globba, Hedychium, Aglaonema, Amorphophallus, Arisaema
lower montane rain forests below 1,000 m Castanopsis, Lithocarpus, Quercus spp., Paramichelia, Actinodaphne, Cinnamomum, Litsea spp., Schima wallichii, Camellia spp., Saurauia napaulensis, Schoepfia fragrans, Olea spp., Diospyros spp., Podocarpus neriifolius, Cephalotaxus mannii Gigantochloa, Schizostachyum, Dendrocalamus; Dianella, Disporum, Ophiopogon, Elatostema spp., Impatiens spp., Sapria himalayana
lower montane oak forests 1,000–1,800 m Castanopsis acuminatissima, Castanopsis tribuloides, Betula alnoides, Carpinus viminea, Lithocarpus, Quercus, Clerodendrum spp., Viburnum spp., Wendlandia tinctoria, Styrax benzoides, Mahonia nepalensis Agapetes hosseana, Aeschynanthus spp., Rubus, Clematis, Smilax spp.; Pteridium aquilinum; Amischotolype spp., Begonia spp., Blumea, Camchaya, Crassocephalum, Saussurea, Hedyotis spp., Mitracarpus
lower montane pine–oak forests 1,000–1,400 m Pinus kesiya, etc.
upper montane rain forests from 1,800 m Quercus glabricupulata, Schima wallichii, Eurya nitida, Gordonia dalglieshiana, Acer spp., Exbucklandia populnea, Myrsine semiserrata, Vaccinium sprengelii, Rhododendron arboreum subsp. delavayi Strobilanthes spp., Viburnum kerrii, Dichroa febrifuga; Neohymenopogon parasiticus; Carex baccans, Gentiana spp., Impatiens spp., Lobelia pyramidalis, Paris polyphylla; Balanophora fungosa subsp. indica; Dendrobium, Bulbophyllum, Coelogyne, Eria, Pholidota, Otochilus
upper montane peat bog 2,500 m Sphagnum, Rhododendron arboreum subsp. delavayi

Fauna

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With 383 avifauna species,[8] it ranks second among Thailand's national parks in number of bird species.[9]

Reptile species in Doi Inthanon National Park include:[10]

Amphibian species in Doi Inthanon National Park include:[10]

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Location

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Doi Inthanon National Park The Royal Gazette
  2. ^ Pronunciation
  3. ^ a b c "Doi Inthanon National Park". Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT). Archived from the original on 1 May 2015. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  4. ^ a b "Jungle Law in Thailand's Forests". New Scientist. 18 Nov 1989. pp. 43–. ISSN 0262-4079. Retrieved 20 Nov 2014.
  5. ^ Zeppel, Heather (2006). Indigenous Ecotourism: Sustainable Development and Management. CABI. pp. 237–. ISBN 978-1-84593-124-7. Retrieved 1 Oct 2011.
  6. ^ a b "Doi Inthanon National Park, Chiang Mai Province, northern Thailand". Medium. Medium. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  7. ^ Chayamarit, Kongkanda and Christian Puff (2007). Plants of Doi Inthanon National Park. Bangkok: National Park Office, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.
  8. ^ Poultney, Trevor (1 Jan 2003). Environments: Asia Pacific. Curriculum Press. pp. 22–. ISBN 978-1-86366-567-4. Retrieved 1 Oct 2011.
  9. ^ Elliot, Stephan; Cubitt, Gerald (2001). THE NATIONAL PARKS and other Wild Places of THAILAND. New Holland Publishers (UK) Ltd. pp. 62–67. ISBN 9781859748862.
  10. ^ a b Kirati Kunya, Montri Sumontha, Nonn Panitvong, Wuttipong Dongkumfu, Thana Sirisamphan and Olivier S. G. Pauwels. 2015. A New Forest-dwelling Bent-toed Gecko (Squamata: Gekkonidae: Cyrtodactylus) from Doi Inthanon, Chiang Mai Province, northern Thailand. Zootaxa. 3905(4):573-584. [p.579] DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3905.4.9
  11. ^ "Species New to Science: [Herpetology • 2015] Cyrtodactylus inthanon | ตุ๊กกายดอยอินทนนท์ | Doi Inthanon Bent-toed Gecko • A New Forest-dwelling Bent-toed Gecko (Squamata: Gekkonidae: Cyrtodactylus) from Doi Inthanon, Chiang Mai Province, northern Thailand". 16 January 2015.
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