
Ko Ra-Ko Phra Thong Archipelago
- Country:Thailand
- Site number:2153
- Area:19,648 ha
- Designation date:12-08-2013
- Coordinates:09°08'N 98°16'E
Overview
Ko Ra-Ko Phra Thong Archipelago. 12/08/2013; Phang Nga Province; 19,648 ha; 09º08’16”N 098º16’34”E. The site consists of two islands in the Andaman Sea, 2 km off the west coast of Southern Thailand. About 1,064 people, most of them fishermen; inhabit the area, which features a rare and complex habitat mosaic including grasslands, peat swamp forests, freshwater pools, evergreen forests, mangrove forests, extensive seagrass beds and coral reefs. The site provides nesting and foraging habitat for four threatened turtle species, the Green, Olive Ridley, Hawksbill, and Leatherback Turtles. Ko Phra Thong Island is the last remaining site in Thailand known to support a significant breeding population of the vulnerable Lesser Adjutant Leptoptilos javanicus. Important mammal species include the endangered Sunda pangolin Manis javanica, the vulnerable Sambar deer Cervus unicolor, and the Dugong. 700 hectares of seagrass beds represent an important nursery ground for 268 species of coastal fishes and numerous other marine species. Collection of Lesser Adjutant nestlings for food, unsustainable tourism development, land reclamation and land encroachment are the main threats within the site, with overfishing and destructive fishing occurring along the coast. Ramsar Site no. 2153. Most recent RIS information: 2013.
- National legal designation:
- none
- Last publication date:12-08-2013