Princess Sirindhorn Wildlife Sanctuary ( th, เขตรักษาพันธุ์สัตว์ป่าเฉลิมพระเกียรติสมเด็จพระเทพรัตนราชสุดาฯ สยามบรมราชกุมารี), or popularly known as Pa Phru To Daeng (ป่าพรุโต๊ะแดง), or just called Phru To Daeng (พรุโต๊ะแดง) is a largest and most fertile peat swamp forest in Thailand covering an area of 125,625 rais, about in Mueang Narathiwat,

Tak Bai Tak Bai ( th, ตากใบ, ) is a border town on Malaysia-Thailand Border, the capital of Tak Bai District, Narathiwat Province. Visitors can visit Malaysia by Pengkalan Kubur pass, Kelantan state. Administratively it is a town (''thesaban m ...

Su-ngai Kolok Su-ngai Kolok ( th, สุไหงโกลก, ms, Sungai Golok) is a border town, subdistrict, and district on the Malaysia-Thailand Border in Narathiwat Province, Thailand. It is one of the largest and most prosperous districts in Narathiwa ...

, and Su-ngai Padi districts of

Narathiwat province Narathiwat ( th, นราธิวาส, Malay: Menara) is one of the southern provinces (''changwat'') of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are (from west clockwise) Yala and Pattani. To the south it borders the Malaysian state of Kelantan an ...

in southern Thailand. It is about 6 km (3 mi) from

Su-ngai Kolok railway station Sungai Golok railway station is a railway station in Sungai Golok Sub-district, Su-ngai Kolok District, Narathiwat. It is a class 1 railway station from Thon Buri railway station. Sungai Golok Station is the furthest railway station from Bangko ...

. It is named after

Khlong A ''khlong'' ( th, คลอง, ), alternatively spelt as ''klong'' () commonly refers to a canal in Thailand. These canals are spawned by the rivers Chao Phraya, Tha Chin, and Mae Klong, along with their tributaries particularly in the low-ly ...

To Daeng, one of three main watercourses flowing through the forest. "To Daeng" is a name of one old magician Muslim woman in

folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, ranging ...

, who disappeared in the forest and was said to have finally transformed into a crocodile. While its officially name honours Princess

Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, The Princess Royal and Princess Debaratana Rajasuda ( th, มหาจักรีสิรินธร, ; ; born April 2, 1955), formerly Princess Sirindhorn Debaratanasuda Kitivadhanadulsobhak ( th, สมเ ...

, who first visited here in 1990. This peat swamp forest is a waterlogged tropical rainforest. Under the dark brown water is soft soil formed by the accumulation of decayed vegetation and animals that slowly decomposed and became peat soil with its layer's thickness of 0.5–5 m (1–16 ft). Since the soiled water is slightly acidic, the plants and wildlife species inhabiting the peat swamp forest and adaptable to the type of soil and basin that has expanded over the land for a long time. Pa Phru To Daeng contains a variety of flora and fauna with special characteristics. The plants growing in this forest have buttresses to support the trunks to stand on spongy ground as well as strong branch roots expanding with stilt roots intertwining to support each other. Interesting plant species in this forest include

Egyptian white water-lily ''Nymphaea lotus'', the white Egyptian lotus, tiger lotus, white lotus or Egyptian white water-lily, is a flowering plant of the family Nymphaeaceae. Distribution It grows in various parts of East Africa and Southeast Asia. The ''Nymphaea lot ...

(''Nymphaea lotus'') and ''Kong'' ('' Hanguana malayana''), a herbaceous plant with stolon that float in the water. Pa Phru To Daeng provides habitat to flat-headed cat (''Prionailurus planiceps''), hairy-nosed otter (''Lutra sumatrana''), rufous-tailed shama (''Trichixos pyrropygus''),

Malaysian blue flycatcher The Malaysian blue flycatcher (''Cyornis turcosus'') is a species of bird in the family Muscicapidae. It is found in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. It is threaten ...

(''Cyornis turcosus''), especially

black hornbill The black hornbill (''Anthracoceros malayanus'') is a species of bird of the hornbill family Bucerotidae. It lives in Asia in Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand. The Black-casqued Hornbill has a selectiveness towards th ...

(''Anthracoceros malayanus''), one of 13 hornbill species in Thailand. Fish species include ''

Pseudeutropius indigens ''Pseudeutropius'' is a genus of catfishes conventionally placed in the family Schilbeidae but recent work has suggested it be placed in the newer family Horabagridae, the genus is native to Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most nota ...

'', which is the world's newest species of schilbeid catfish,

slender walking catfish ''Clarias nieuhofii'', the slender walking catfish, is a species of clariid catfish. It has a wide distribution in Southeast Asia including southern Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malay Peninsula, parts of the Greater Sunda Islands (Indonesia a ...

(''Clarias nieuhofii''), and rusty squarehead catfish (''Chaca bankanensis''), a small-sized catfish that looks like a flat-headed catfish, which is popular as ornamental fish. Natural trails at the Sirindhorn Peat Swamp Forest Nature Research and Study Centre are about long with wooden bridges. Signboards along the trails inform visitors.Piyaruethai Piyopeerapong (story) & Baramee Temboonkiat (photographs), เพลินพรุโต๊ะแดง สุดยอด ณ สุดใต้ ("Phru To Daeng" The ultimate peat swamp forest of the Southern land.), Osotho, Vol. 60 Issue 2 (September 2019).

References

{{Coord, 06, 04, 33.8, N, 101, 57, 49.3, E, region:TH_type:landmark, display=title category: Wildlife sanctuaries of Thailand Geography of Narathiwat province category:Ramsar sites in Thailand