Straw Bird Festival in Chai Nat (4/2/2017) Chai Nat province is organizing its Straw Bird Festival, which attracts a number of tourists coming to appreciate local culture, especially the folk wisdom of making artificial birds from rice straw. Chai Nat Governor Nimit Wanchaithanawong presided over the opening of the Straw Bird Festival, being held at the stadium in front of the Chai Nat Town Hall from 3 to 12 February 2017. This years Chai Nat Straw Bird Festival is the 32nd of its kind. The festival features a contest of straw birds, demonstrations of making straw birds, Thai cultural shows, and a bazaar of local products under the \"One Tambon, One Product (OTOP) program. Visitors will also enjoy taking photographs with gigantic straw birds. Chai Nat province is known as an important rice bowl in the central region of Thailand. It is located on the west bank of the Chao Phraya River. The majority of the local population is engaged in rice farming, so there is plenty of straw to make artificial birds from. The first straw bird here was created by local students. It attracted a large number of people and the innovation was widely recognized. Then the provincial authorities decided to organize the Straw Bird Festival on an annual basis. The first Straw Bird Festival was held in February 1986, with 130 straw birds on display, and it drew a big gathering of both Thais and foreign visitors. The Tourism Authority of Thailand later invited a straw bird procession to participate in a ceremony to open the Visit Thailand Year 1987 at Sanam Luang in Bangkok. Since then, the Straw Bird Festival has become a major festival in Chai Nat. One of the major tourist attractions in this province is Chai Nat Bird Park, located in Khao Tha Phra subdistrict. The Bird Park has become the largest aviary in Asia. Apart from various bird species, there are also snake, rabbit, and wildlife farms. Inside the Bird Park, there is also an aquarium, which displays a collection of 63 species of freshwater fish found in the Chao Phraya River. 28/09/2021 Page 1 กรมประชาสัมพันธ์.