16 Days Uganda Bird watching and wildlife safari

BIRD WATCHING AND AFRICAN WILDLIFE SAFARI IN UGANDA – AFRICA

This is a specialized African wildlife Safari that brings you the best of Uganda’s experience putting into consideration that the destination is Africa condensed with lots to offer. This African safari offers Uganda’s finest and most diverse bird watching and other wildlife safari viewing sites, including Queen Elizabeth, Uganda’s safari hotspot and Murchison Falls National Park the 3rd best birding watching site in Africa and the largest safari park in Uganda, Semliki, Kibale as well as Africa’s best Shoebill location, the Mabamba Wetland which is among the Important Birding Areas (IBAs). We shall take you to the best African destinations, sites and spots for African birding, and the best ecotourism accommodation facilities. If you choose to track gorillas, this African Safari could start from the North Western part of the country or the western.

DAY BY DAY ACTIVITIES

Day 1: Arrival for our African bird watching and wildlife safari.

You will be met by our African Safari Guide who will transfer you from Entebbe International Airport to your Lodge. There will be a detailed briefing about this Ugandan safari. Depending on the time of arrival, we may start our safari with bird watching around Lake Victoria shores and the highlight here is always the Entebbe Botanical gardens or the Lutembe Bay which is an Important Birding Area (IBA) as well as a Ramsar Site. On a good evening we highly look out for the Black Necked, Orange and Golden Backed Weaver, Ross’s and Great Blue Turaco, Klaas’s, Diederik, Red Chested and African Emerald Cuckoo, Vanga Flycatcher, The Giant and Pygmy Kingfisher late in the evening we keep our eyes open for the Bat Hawk, later retire to our lodge for dinner and dinner night stay . 2 friends lodge, Anderita Beach hotel

Day 2: Bird watching Mabamba and later transfer to Lake Mburo National Park.

Today we visit Mabamba bay and its adjacent swamp taking us through African rural areas and starting to appreciate how Uganda people lead their day to-day lives. The road to Mabamba winds its way through areas of secondary forest and agricultural farm land attracting a variety of bird species like the Red-headed Lovebird, African Crowned-Hornbills, a range of sunbirds including the Green-headed, Green, Red-chested, Collared, Marico and Scarlet-chested, the African pied Wagtail is common along the road. We shall stop over at Mpigi Swamp depending on the route used either to and fro to look out for the Papyrus Gonolek and the White-winged Warbler. On the hand paddled canoes, we explore a jumble of channels and mudflats for one of African globally threatened bird species – Shoebill a big beast endemic to Africa as a continent and highly sought after by many bird watching clients who make it to East Africa. We should have a very good chance of seeing this magnificent bird here, other species might include African Pygmy Goose, the rare Lesser and African Jacana Carruthers’ Cisticola, African Fish Eagle, Winding Cisticola, Fan-tailed Widowbird, Blue-breasted Bee-eater, etc. after this we shall proceed to lake Mburo National park. Overnight at Mihingo lodge, Rwakobo rock

Day 3: Full day bird watching lake mburo national park

Though the smallest savannah national parks in Uganda, lake mburo national park is one of the most rewarding bird watching park Expect to see the Tabora cisiticola, Brubru, African Golden breasted Bunting, Sulphar Breasted Bush Shrike, African Cuckoo, Red Faced Barbet, keen look out for the Coqui Francolin, Brown Parrots, Bare Faced Go-away bird and much more. As you go on with your birding, you may encounter animals like the Zebra, Impala, Topi, Eland, African Buffalo and much more. Overnight at Rwakobo rock lodge or Mihingo Lodge.

Day 4: Bird watching In The Morning And later Transfer To Queen Elizabeth National Park

After an early morning breakfast we shall check out and proceed for a boat ride on lake Mburo where this African Safari park derives its name. On the boat we expect to see the African Darter, White Backed Night Heron, African Finfoot, African Fish Eagle, Malachite, Pied and Giant Kingfishers, Hippos, Crocs and others after which we begin our drive to the renowned Queen Elizabeth National Park, bird watching enroute. This Uganda’s second largest safari park contains Africa’s best game populations as well as some of Uganda’s biggest birding list, an incredible bird list of 611 species! In the late afternoon birding might produce African Morning Dove, Grey-headed and African Pygmy Kingfishers, African Crake, Black-headed Gonolek, Slender-billed, Yellow-backed and Lesser-masked Weavers, African Fish Eagle, Pin-tailed Whydah, Black-winged Pranticole, African Wattled Lapwing and much more. Dinner and overnight stay at Engazi Lodge or Simba Safari Lodge

Day 5: Early morning birding safari and game viewing

This morning we start early for a birding safari and game drive towards the Kasenyi track. The drive takes us through a productive area of grassy plains, which support large flocks of a variety of stork species including the Spectacular Saddle-billed, African Open Billed and Woolly necked Storks. The skies are a great habitat tody and watch out for the Bateleur, Grey Kestrel, Lappet-faced, Ruppell’s Griffon, White-backed and Palm-nut Vultures, look out to the roadsides for the African Crake, Common button, Harlequin and Black-rumped Quails, Rufous-naped and Flappet Larks, the grasses always have the Black Coucal, African Moustached Warbler, Marsh Tchagra, Golden Waver and many more. Common mammals include African Buffalo, Uganda Kobs, Lion, Warthog, Bush buck, Deffassa Waterbuck, African Elephant, Spotted Hyena, Leopard and many others. In the afternoon we will take a launch cruise along the Kazinga Channel which is a natural magnet for herds of African Elephant, Giant Forest Hog, Buffalo, and the abundant Hippopotamus. Birding here is excellent with great photographic opportunities. We might be blessed with congregations of African Skimmers, Great-white and Pink-backed Pelicans, Great and Long-tailed Cormorants, African Open-billed Stork, African Jacana, White-faced Whistling Duck, Marsh, Wood and Common Sandpipers, Malachite Kingfisher, African Wattled Plover, etc

Day 6 – Birding In The Maramagambo Forest And Kyambura Gorge Queen Elizabeth National Park

This morning, we shall bird to Maramagambo Forest following the main trail. We shall visit the Blue Lake and Bat Cave where we expect to see African Rock Python that found refuge in the Cave, and feasts on the Bats for breakfast, lunch and supper! Special birds of this Forest include Narina Trogon, Rufous Flycatcher Thrush; White tailed Ant-thrush, Black Bee-eater, Grey-headed Kingfisher and White-breasted Negrofinch. Late in the afternoon we will visit the spectacular Kyambura Gorge: a unique, deep and isolated gulf in the plains, where dense riverine forest offers a good selection of forest birds like the Red-fronted Tinkerbird, the beautiful and sought-after Blue-breasted Kingfisher, Grey woodpecker, etc.

Day 7 & 8 Bird watching and African Wildlife safari to Semliki National Park, Uganda

After break fast transfer to Semliki national park. This is one of Uganda’s newest national parks, rated as one of the richest African areas for both flora and fauna especially for birds from the west Africa. Semliki National Park is situated in the remote corner of extreme west of Uganda, in Bundibugyo District. The park is an eastern extension of the Congo’ vast Ituri Forest and formed part of the forest continuum during the climatic upheavals of the Pleistocene. The Park is about 50km from Fort Portal town. Some of the specials which the park offers include among others the Piping Hornbill, Capuchin Babbler, Blue-headed Crested Flycatcher, Lyre-tailed Honeyguide, Black-wattled Hornbill, Nkulengu Rail, Congo Serpent Eagle, Long-tailed Hawk, Crested and Red-billed Malimbe. We shall go birding along the way and reach Semliki late in the evening. We Check into Semliki Lodge. In the night we bird in the savanna looking for nightjars and owls. The next day we shall start after an early morning breakfast, carry packed lunch and head for a full day birding in the forest. Overnight at Atako Country Resort or Mountains of the Moon Hotel

Day 9 & 10 Bird Watching and African Wildlife safari to Kibale Forest National Park, Uganda

This day we shall have a chance of birding the main road or one of the trails in the forest. We might come across the African Emerald Cuckoo, Purple-headed Starling, Black-billed Turaco, Yellow-billed Barbet, Grey-throated Barbet, Blue-throated Roller, Narrow-tailed Starling, Western Black-headed Oriole, Yellow-throated and Yellow-rumped Tinkerbirds. We spend our nights at Ndali Lodge / Primate Safari Lodge- Uganda. The next day, we wake up very early and assemble for briefing and thereafter enter the forest to look for our cousins, the Chimps. The activity takes 1 to 5 hours. In the afternoon, we may choose to go to Bihingamy Wetland or take one of the trails in the Park to look for the stunning Green-breasted Pitta, Fire-crested Alethe, Scaly-breasted Illadopsis, colourful butterflies and other species of primates.

Day 11 & 12 Transfer to Murchison Falls National Park

Today we leave early for Murchison Falls National Park. This is a rather longer drive but there are a few birding spots. The name of the park was derived from the incredible Murchison Falls, where the Nile is forced through a 6-meter gap, forming the most powerful water surge on the planet. A boat cruise on the calmer stretches will allow us to watch and photograph the birds and the animals which throng the banks, and we can expect to find one of the African most peculiar bird, the Shoebill. We will also explore the park’s broad-leaved woodland, dry grasslands, and forests, including nocturnal expeditions to find the unrivaled Standard-winged Nightjar. We will be staying in the magnificent Paraa Safari Lodge- Uganda. The next day we shall start early with packed lunch and take a boat trip birding to the bottom of the falls. Later this morning, wecontinue birding to the delta on a game drive. We relax later in the day and may opt for an evening drive for nightjars.

Day 13 & 14 Bird watching Budongo Forest Reserve

Budongo Forest Reserve is part of Murchison Falls Conservation Area and is the largest natural forest in Uganda and East Africa as a whole. It lies on the escarpment northeast of Lake Albert. The reserve occupies gently undulating terrain, with a general slope north-northwest towards the Rift Valley. Specials in Budongo Forest include among others; Sabine’s spine tail, the rare Cassin’s Spine-tail, Pygmy Crakes, Kingfishers (Chocolate-backed, Blue-breasted, African Dwarf), White-spotted Fluff tail, Ituri Batis, Puvell’s Illadopsis, Brown Twin-spot, Cameroon Somber Greenbill, Cassin’s Hawk-Eagle, Crowned Eagle, Yellow-crested Woodpecker, Forest Robin, Little Green Sunbird, Grey-headed Sunbird, Olive Green Camaroptera We shall start after an early breakfast at Paraa and bird on the way to Budongo Forest. We go birding along the escarpment overlooking Lake Albert. We stay at Masindi Hotel, about 30 Km away from the forest, the nearest good accommodation. The next day, we have a full day African birding along the Royal Mile, a dazzling forestry track rated as one of the premier forest birding sites in Africa; we will make an acquaintance with the first of many central African forest birds. Skulking Alethes and Illadopses sing from the undergrowth and we will work through mixed-species flocks of Greenbuls, Eremomelas, Crombecs, and hornbills, certainly first rate forest birding.

Day 15 Travel to Kampala / Entebbe.

Today, we may choose to wind up our wildlife and African birding safari in Entebbe botanical gardens

Day 16: End of our 16 Days Bird Watching And Wildlife Safari / Departure.