Khao Yai National Park (, , ) is a national park in Thailand. Established in 1962 as Thailand's first national park, it is the third largest national park in Thailand. Description Khao Yai National Park is in the western part of the Sankamphaeng Mountain Range, at the southwestern boundary of the Khorat Plateau. The highest mountain in the area of the park is high Khao Rom. This park lies largely in Nakhon Ratchasima Province (Khorat), but also includes parts of Saraburi, Prachinburi and Nakhon Nayok Provinces. The park is the third largest in Thailand. It covers an area of 1,353,472 rai ~ , including tropical seasonal forests and grasslands. Elevations mostly range from . There are 3,000 species of plants, 320 species of birds such as red junglefowl and coral-billed ground cuckoo, and 66 species of mammals, including Asian black bear, Indian elephant, gaur, gibbon, Indian sambar deer, southern pig-tailed macaque, Indian muntjac, Ussuri dhole and wild pigs. There have been are no tigers in Khao Yai for at least 20 years. Its waterfalls include the Heo Narok (เหวนรก), and Heo Suwat (หวสุวัต) made famous by the film The Beach. Recent wildlife studies show that animal ranges, particularly the few resident tigers, are impacted by human activity near the centre of the park. History Around 1922 some people from Ban Tha Dan and Ban Tha Chai villages in Nakhon Nayok Province built a settlement within the forest in the Sankamphaeng mountains. Up to 30 households cultivated the land. The area was formally recognized by the government and classified as Tambon Khao Yai within Pak Phli District. Due to its remoteness from the authorities it became a refuge for criminals and fugitives. After an attempt to capture the suspects in the area, in 1932 the villagers were relocated into the plains some 30 km away and the tambon status was cancelled. In 1959 the prime minister, Field Marshal Sarit Thanarat, instructed the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of the Interior to create a process whereby national parks could be established. Khao Yai National Park was then established on 18 September 1962, declared by royal proclamation in the Government Gazette (Book 79, Section 89) as the first national park in Thailand. A major role in its establishment was played by Boonsong Lekakul, one of the 20th century's most famous Thai conservationists. It was named after the defunct tambon, Khao Yai. In