Qualla: Thung Yai Naresuan Wildlife Sanctuary

Thung Yai Naresuan Wildlife Sanctuary: Introduction

Fri, 06 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Altaileopard, CC0. In February 2018, rangers in one of the most protected forests on Earth found a billionaire sitting beside the skinned carcasses of a black leopard, a Kalij pheasant, and a barking deer, with three rifles and ammunition at his side. Premchai Karnasuta, president of one of Thailand's largest construction companies, had been caught poaching in the Thung Yai Naresuan Wildlife Sanctuary, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that shelters some of Southeast Asia's last Indochinese tigers. His defense was two words: 'I didn't do it.' The incident laid bare a tension that has defined this sanctuary since its creation: who gets to use the forest, and who pays the price for its protection.

Image: Altaileopard | CC0

Thung Yai Naresuan Wildlife Sanctuary: The Big Field of a Warrior King

Fri, 06 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Altaileopard, CC0. The Thai name tells you what to expect. Thung yai means 'big field,' a reference to the savanna that opens up in the heart of the sanctuary, and Naresuan honors the Siamese king who supposedly stationed his army on this plain while waging war against Burma during his reign over t...

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Thung Yai Naresuan Wildlife Sanctuary: Where Four Worlds Meet

Fri, 06 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Altaileopard, CC0. What makes Thung Yai exceptional is its position at a biogeographic crossroads. Species with Sundaic, Indo-Chinese, Indo-Burmese, and Sino-Himalayan affinities all converge here, creating a faunal diversity that few single protected areas can match. Indochinese tigers and leopard...

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Thung Yai Naresuan Wildlife Sanctuary: The People the Forest Displaced

Fri, 06 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Altaileopard, CC0. Long before conservation drew its boundaries, people lived here. Paleolithic, Mesolithic, and Neolithic stone tools found in the Khwae Noi and Khwae Yai river valleys attest to human presence stretching back millennia. For at least 700 years, Mon and Karen communities have called...

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Thung Yai Naresuan Wildlife Sanctuary: Two Hundred Rangers, One Million Rai

Fri, 06 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Altaileopard, CC0. Protecting 3,647 square kilometers of wilderness is a task that dwarfs the resources allocated to it. The sanctuary employs roughly 200 staff spread across 25 ranger stations, each assigned three firearms, some of which no longer function. These rangers patrol approximately 12,00...

Image: Altaileopard | CC0

Thung Yai Naresuan Wildlife Sanctuary: Rivers Flowing in Every Direction

Fri, 06 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Altaileopard, CC0. The sanctuary straddles the border between Kanchanaburi and Tak provinces, its western edge running along Thailand's frontier with Myanmar in the southern reaches of the Dawna Range. Major rivers define the landscape: the Mae Klong and Mae Chan originate to the northeast and join...

Image: Altaileopard | CC0