Like any protected tropical forest, the wilderness of Namtok Chat Trakan National Park is blessed with a fascinatingdiversity of plants and other living things. On the forest floor alone, you can find a variety of wildflowers and fungi (some ofthe latter sport beautiful forms and colours). I was impressed by the heart-shaped leaves of a climbing plant called huachai tossakan (Hoya kerrii). But what amazed me most was the piles of the seeds of krabok trees (barking deer’s mango or Irvingia malayana). These seeds were put together by feral water buffaloes which fed on the krabok fruits that had fallen from the tall trees. The seeds survived the digestion and came out in droppings. Over time the softer mass of the dung decomposed or was washed away by rain, leaving behind thepiles of kernels. I was told that in the dry season villagers would climb up the mountains to gather these seeds, roastthem and sell them as a snack. I had seen these seeds in upcountry markets many times before but this was thefirst time I learned how some of them are collected.