Top Birding Destinations in Uganda
Explore the top birding destinations in Uganda. Are you a die-hard birder or just a one-time birding enthusiast? Then grab your bags and board the plane for Uganda, the African birding paradise. In this small East African country, catching a glimpse of the rare feathered beauties is something that every traveler desires. There are over 1,080 bird species in Uganda with about 33 recognized Important Bird Areas.
The following are the top birding destinations in Uganda to spy on, to see if you wish to see endemic and migratory species. From the rare shoebill storks, Green-breasted pitta, to the gracious Grey-crowned cranes or the World’s largest bird- ostriches.
Mabamba Bay Wetland
Situated along the shores of Lake Victoria and the North-west of Entebbe Peninsula, this wetland is home to remarkable 260 bird species, making it one of the top birding destinations in Uganda. Mabamba bay is the stronghold of the iconic shoebill storks, although the wetland vegetation especially papyrus attracts large flocks of migrant bird species in the months of April and November. Here, twitches should look out for the Papyrus gonolek, great blue Turaco, Palm-nut vultures, Northern brown-throated weavers, lesser jacana, Carruther’s Cisticola, Pallid harrier, swamp flycatchers and so much more.
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
This UNESCO World Heritage site is not only a wonderful gorilla trekking destination but also a birding spot that attracts thousands of bird enthusiasts from across the Globe. Visitors come to check out the amazing 350 bird species that include 23 Albertine Rift endemics. The indigenous thick forests, canopy contours, transitional areas, and tea estates attract various bird species.
While here, look out for the Black-faced Prinia, Kivu ground thrush, Neumann’s warblers, the Northern double-collared sunbirds and handsome francolin. Don’t miss the Bronze-naped pigeon, Red-throated alethe, Cassin’s honeybird, Rwenzori batis, Jameson’s antpecker and Grey-chested iladopsis among others. Mubwindi swamp is one of the park’s birdwatching hot spots with regal sunbirds, Rwenzori hill babbler, Rwenzori Apalis, Archer’s ground robin and so much more.
Queen Elizabeth National Park – Top Birding Destinations in Uganda
The sweeping savannah grasslands, patches of rainforest, woodlands, lakes, and wetlands of the 1978-square-kilometer Queen Elizabeth National Park are populated by over 600 bird species. This makes it the highest ever recorded in a particular birding destinations within Uganda. Birding between Mweya and Ishasha sectors introduces birders to the gull-billed terns, sooty chat, grey-crowned cranes and Black-headed gonolek.
Birders won’t also miss the lesser black-backed gulls, Moustached grass warblers, Flappet larks, hammerkops and African shrikes. African shrikes, African fish eagles, pied and giant kingfisher, African skimmers, shoebill storks, and African jacana are common during the boat ride on Kazinga Channel.
Murchison Falls National Park
Undeniably a must-visit birding destination in Uganda. Murchison Falls National Park is Uganda’s largest and oldest national park, situated in the northwest. It is home to some of the most mind-blowing bird species you will ever come across.
The adjacent Budongo Forest is another birding paradise that you can’t afford to miss and is ideal for spotting the Ituri batis, Puvel’ iladopsis, the greyish eagle owls and many others. The park’s Riverine tickets offer shelter to the black-headed batis, Heuglin’s francolin, and the double-toothed barbets, while the open pal savannah is perfect for seeing Senegal lapwings and Piapiac.
Mgahinga Gorilla National Park – Top Birding Destinations in Uganda
With over 23 Albertine Rift endemics and about 10% of Uganda’s bird species living in is 34-square-kilometer landscape, Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is a bird watcher’s haven. Located within south-western Uganda, in the Virunga massif, it is a gathering place for plethora of Albertine Rift endemics that include the strange weavers and stripe-breasted tit. Other species include handsome francolin, Rwenzori batis, Dusky Crimsonwing, Red-throated alethe, Kivu ground thrush, to mention but a few.
Rwenzori Mountains National Park
Popular for its unmatched mountaineering adventures and marked as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Rwenzori Mountains National Park is a perfect example of birding in seclusion. It is relatively unexplored for birding adventures, yet it’s a haven for more than 220 bird species, including over 19 Albertine Rift endemics.
Bird natural habitats in this park are peat bogs, open montane grasslands, glaciers, high elevation forests, and snowfields that shelter in the white-starred robin. Don’t miss the Rwenzori turaco, bearded vultures, long-eared owls, slender-billed starlings and cinnamon-chested bee-eaters among others.
Kibale Forest National Park – Top Birding Destinations in Uganda
Known as the ‘primate capital of the world‘, it is interesting to know that Kibale Forest National Park is also a top birding destination in Uganda, offering a diversity of forest bird species. In a protected area dominated by tropical rainforest and high precipitation levels, expect walks through the jungles to search for the avifauna.
Bird species to find here include the green-breasted pitta, brown-chested alethe, white-naped pigeons, Abyssinian ground thrush, Great blue turaco, Black-capped Apalis, African fin foot, Toro Olive greenbuls, African grey parrots.
Lake Mburo National Park
Located in the western side of Uganda, Lake Mburo National Park is another unmissable birding destination in Uganda, with over 350 species of birds. Predominantly with savannah grasslands and scattered woodlands, as well as wetland-fringed lakes, it is obviously a park with numerous natural habitats for birds.
Be prepared to see the Tabora Cisticola, Nubian woodpecker, Papyrus gonolek, red-faced barbets, green-capped eremomela, African finfoot, Yellow-throated leaf love and so much more.
Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary
This wetland sanctuary is synonymous with bird watching and it would be an injustice not to include it on the list of top birding destinations in Uganda. Bigodi wetland is home to about 200 bird species, where visitors are offered the opportunity to see the great blue Turaco, papyrus gonolek and papyrus canary. Other bird species include snowy-crowned robin-chat, Speckle-breasted woodpecker, the western nicator and Bocage’s bush shrike among others.
Semuliki National Park
Sprawled within the Albertine Rift Valley in Western Uganda, Semuliki National Park is one place that no birder should miss during their birding trip. Here are about 440 bird species sheltered within the savannah grasslands, lowland forest, riverine and wetland ecosystems.
Find a lot of the Guinea-Congo biome species, the Lake Victoria Basin biome species and the Sudan-Guinea savannah biome species. Top on your checklist should be red-throated bee-eater, Congo Serpent eagles, Nkulengu Rail, Purple glossy starlings, the lesser kestrel, Blue swallows, Abyssinian ground thrush, Fire-crested Alethe, Grey ground thrush, to mention but a few.
More Birding Destinations in Uganda
Other birding destinations in Uganda include Kidepo Valley National Park, Mount Elgon National Park, Maramagambo forest, Lake Bisina, and surrounding wetlands, Kibimba Rice scheme, to mention but a few.
Birding in Uganda can be combined with wildlife viewing in Queen Elizabeth, Lake Mburo, Murchison falls, and Kidepo Valley National Parks. For visitors that undertake birding in Bwindi Impenetrable or Mgahinga Gorilla National Parks, it would interest you to know that you can spice up the experience with a gorilla trekking tour. As a result, you will get a chance to meet face to face with the mountain gorillas in their natural habitats.
While on your birding trip, you can also undertake chimpanzee trekking in the world-famous Kibale Forest National Park, the ‘primate capital of the World’. You will get a chance to meet face to face with mankind’s closest relatives in the animal kingdom.
Rwanda, the neighboring country to Uganda is also a birders paradise, tourists can visit Volcanoes National Park not only for gorilla tracking in Rwanda but also for an excellent bird watching tour. You can also visit Nyungwe Forest National Park, which is home to over 300 bird species, 27 of which are endemic to the local Albertine Rift.
