In the lead up to World Environment Day (June 5), more than 100 students from five schools joined Khao Yai and PeunPa staff to get their hands dirty planting trees on a 20 acre deforested area near the park boundary, where human encroachment had damaged the forest.

Tree planting during the rainy season (May-June) gives saplings the best chance to survive, thanks to reliably high rainfalls. Local villagers grew saplings for the reforestation from seeds, nurturing them for many months - now those saplings can spread their roots.

Luckily, the rain held off on this fun day for all involved; full of music, smiling faces and hands-on conservation. The participation of schools aims to build awareness about the importance of forest preservation for future generations.

With generous support from The Foundation and many small helping hands, PeunPa’s Khao Yai reforestation work is direct action to combat global warming and reclaim lost habitat for wildlife.

If you stay at Khao Yai National Park overnight, you’ll know that tents and bungalows come with a complementary alarm clock - screeching Gibbons!

What may be an incomprehensible racket of howling and hooting to sleepy park visitors is actually one of the most complicated animal communications in nature.

Researchers have only recently become aware of how Gibbon calls can function as detailed warnings of danger, not just romantic serenades.

Scientists from as far away as Scotland and Germany have come to Khao Yai to study the musical calls of these tree dwelling apes, discovering that Gibbons switch the order of sounds to alter the meaning of their songs.

Gibbon calls echo through the Khao Yai forest

Gibbon songs vary so dramatically, their range was compared to that between ‘gangsta rap’ and ’sappy pop’ music by MSNBC journalist Jasmin Aline Persch in her article Low-profile singers of the animal world.

Khao Yai is home to two species of gibbon, the White-handed or Lar gibbon and the rarer Pileated Gibbon. In a small area these two species even hybridize naturally, one of only three such gibbon hybridization zones in the world.

Earlier this month, 300 students attending the Sai Jai Thai Youth Camp spent three days in Khao Yai to learn about the forest, its wildlife, and the importance of nature conservation.

The Sai Jai Thai Youth Camp allows students from the South of Thailand, many from families affected by the 2004 tsunami, to experience a new environment and learn about other parts of the country, including the World Heritage Listed Khao Yai National Park.

Khao Yai and PeunPa staff assisted with fun educational activities, including hiking in the forest; bird watching and wildlife spot lighting; singing folk songs; and hands-on learning with animal bones and paw print casts.

Forbes has named Khao Yai among the Top Spots For Southeast Asian Ecotourism.

Khao Yai was featured in the top ten picks not just for it’s World Heritage listed forests and amazing biodiversity, but also as a place to learn about “regional ecology and conservation efforts.”

The PeunPa Foundation’s community outreach work in villages around the park was noted as a highlight for eco conscious travellers wanting to see and learn about forest conservation in action.

PeunPa is guiding sustainable development projects in several villages that border Khao Yai, to help former poachers become forest protectors.

Interested young concert goers got their hands on some paw prints cast in Khao Yai at PeunPa’s forest education booth for the Retree Music Festival (September 13-14) . PeunPa’s Carnivore Project Field Coordinator, Kanda, is pictured explaining which animals made each track.

PeunPa’s booth presented the results of carnivore conservation research conducted in Khao Yai. Thousands of concert goers had the opportunity to learn more about Khao Yai’s wildlife, the work of PeunPa and other conservation groups, as well as experience some great music and support Thailand’s forests.