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MEMORABLE 12 DAY BIRDING SAFARI
| Day 1 |
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| Bird the Uganda Wildlife Education Centre
(U.W.E.C), Botanical gardens and other areas in Entebbe.
UWEC originally started as an animal orphanage in the
1920s but gradually grew to be a show place of various
flora and fauna. Birds to look out for here include Crowned
cranes, Parrots, Pelicans, ostrich, Crowned cranes, weaver
birds like the orange weaver, black necked baglafect,
the northern masked weaver, shoebill stork, African Fish
Eagle, small banded snake Eagle, African Goshawk and the
swamp flycatcher. Lunch break and then transfer to the
botanical gardens where you will most likely be able to
enjoy more prolific bird life. A. Whyte the first curator
of Uganda’s Museum started these gardens as a natural
forest for use as research grounds for the introduction
of various ornamental plants and exotic fruits to Uganda.
Birds to look out for here include the yellow-throated
leaf love, the great blue Turaco, Ross’s Turaco,
the black and white casqued hornbill, the pied hornbill.
Yellow backed weaver, orange weaver, brown-throated weaver,
and great reed warbler, sedge warbler and the fish eagle.
Dinner and over night at the Forest Cottages / Hotel African
/ Red Chilli. |
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| Day 2 |
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| After an early breakfast drive to Mabamba
Swamps. Mabamba is an extensive marsh stretching through
a long narrow bay, fringed with papyrus towards the main
body of Lake Victoria and is 50km west of Kampala. Most
of the birding is done by canoe. Bird species to look
out for include the rare shoebill, Blue Breasted Bee-eater,
white faced whistling duck, African water rail, Goliath
herons, spur winged and Pygmy Geese. Dinner and overnight
Forest Cottages/ Hotel Africana / Red Chilli. |
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| Day 3 |
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| Head to Mabira Forest after an early breakfast.
Enroute to the Forest look out for the hooded vulture,
black kite and Marabou stork. Mabira forest reserve is
the largest block of moist semi deciduous forest remaining
in the central region of Uganda. Look out for the Cassin
Hawk Eagle, Nahans Francolin, Leaf love, Blue Headed Crested
flycatcher, Grey Spotted Wood Pecker, Black shouldered
Nightjar, violet backed starling, Yellow Rumped Tinker
bird and Capuchin Babbler. Return to Dinner & overnight.
Forest Cottages/ Hotel Africana/ Red Chilli. |
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| Day 4 |
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| After an early breakfast set off for Lake
Mburo National Park with a brief stop at the Equator.
The park encompasses not only Lake Mburo but also four
other small lakes. It’s easy accessibility from
Kampala (about 4 hours drive from Kampala makes it the
ideal birder gateway). Birding to the park begins as you
turn off to Nshara gate. Look out for the Handsome Francolin,
Pink baked Pelican, Bee-eaters, Helmeted Guinea fowl,
lilac-breasted roller, red faced barbet, Rufuos bellied
heron, green capped Eremomela, long tailed Cisticola,
the Malachite and Pied King fishers. Lunch break at Rwonyo.
Transfer to the lakeside for a boat ride. The boat ride
may yield sightings of the African Finfoot before it disappears
into papyrus floating on the lake. Other birds to look
out for include the rare shoebill, Greater and Lesser
Swamp Warbler; White winged Warbler, Red Headed lovebird,
Green capped Eremomela, Handsome Fracolin and Carmine
Bee-eaters. Dinner & overnight Mantana Luxury Tented
Camp/ Rwonyo rest camp. |
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| Day 5 |
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| After an early breakfast, embark on a foot
safari (Nature Walk). While on the walk look out for the
Red faced Barbet, Bare faced go away bird, Varreaux’s
Eagle Owl, Yellow billed ox pecker and lead coloured flycatcher.
Lunch break. Proceed with a late afternoon game drive
along the Zebra track. The African Wattled Plover, Black
bellied bustard, and Temmricks Courser may be sighted.
Also look out for other animal species such as Burchell’s
Zebra and the Comical Warthogs. Dinner & overnight
Mantana Luxury Tented camp/ Rwonyo Rest Camp. |
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| Day 6 |
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| Get awoken by the sounds of the morning
doves and drive to Queen Elizabeth with a brief. The drive
takes you through the grasslands of Ankole and is punctuated
with stops to see the famous long horned cattle. Over
600 bird species have been recorded so far thus making
the park a birders paradise. It is one of the richest
parks in Africa and supports an astounding density of
flora and fauna. Lunch at Mweya then transfer to the dock
on the channnel for an afternoon launch cruise on Kazinga
channel, which joins lakes Edward and George. This waterway
is a birders paradise and those who experience it, consider
it the highlight of their entire African safari. Birds
to look out for include the Great Snipe, Fish Eagles,
Pallid Harrier, Gull billed Tern, Lesser Kestrel and Shoebill
stork. Other species of interest at the shores of the
channel are the yawning hippos, crocodiles and monitor
lizards. Dinner and overnight Mweya safari lodge/ Ecology
Hostel Institute. |
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| Day 7 |
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| After an early breakfast drive to Maramagambo
for a foot safari through the forest. Bird species to
look out for here include the bat hawks, brown eared woodpecker,
fawn breasted Waxbill, Sulphur breasted bush shrike, and
dark capped yellow warbler, red headed blue bill, African
Finfoot and the Eurasian golden oriole. On a good day
the black and white colobus monkeys may also be spotted.
Dinner and overnight Mweya Safari Lodge/ Institute of
Ecology Hostel. |
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| Day 8 |
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| Rise early before the sun and embark on
an early morning game drive to catch up with early risers.
The drive takes you through the Kasenyi track and Kikorongo
Crater area. The drive will enable you sight various bird
species like the Great White Pelican, Lesser Flamingo,
Martial Eagle, Rupell’s Griffon vulture and weavers.
Late breakfast, then transfer to Kibale Forest National
Park. This park occupies undulating terrain on the main
Uganda Plateau slightly tilted to the south and is drained
by the Dura and Mpanga rivers that flow in a southerly
direction into Lake George. This park is also home to
the largest number of our closest living relative the
endangered Chimpanzee as well as the rare I’hoesti
and Colobus monkeys. Over 325 bird species have been recorded
in this park among which take time to look out for the
African broadbill, white winged warbler and the blue headed
Coucal. Dinner and Over night. |
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| Day 9 |
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| After an early breakfast, go out to the
forest in search of the leaf love, will cocks honey guide,
Joyful Greenbul, superb Black Bee eater, black bellied
seed cracker, Bi coloured Mannikin, Yellow rumped tinker
bird and yellow nicator. Butterflies, Olive Baboons, Mangabey,
bush pig and the giant forest hog may also be spotted.
Dinner and overnight. |
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| Day 10 |
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| Depart early in the morning for Murchison
Falls National Park. This park has a variety of tourist
facilities and is becoming well known internationally
as one of the best sites in Africa for seeing shoebill.
Stop for Lunch in Masindi. Proceed to the “Top of
the Falls” where t drops 45 metres and forces its
way through a 7 meter gorge. Look out for Rock Pratincole
and the African Skimmer. Dinner and overnight Paraa Safari
Lodge/ Red Chilli. |
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| Day 11 |
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| Rise early morning and embark on a game
drive. Look out for bird species such as the spotted morning
thrush, Denhan’s Bustard, Pallid Harrier, Lesser
kestrel, swallow tailed Bee eater, Grey crowned cranes,
silver bird and other animals such as Giraffes, Elephants
and cobs. Lunch break. Then embark on an afternoon launch
cruise on to the bottom of the falls. As you cruise up
the historic Nile, you will most likely be able to see
dazzling red throated bee eaters, Goliath heron, malachite
king fisher, Wattled plover, common Drongo and different
other animals such as hippo, water buck and the Nile crocodile
many of which grow to enormous size. Dinner and over night. |
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| Day 12 |
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| After breakfast take on another boat ride
to the delta near Lake Albert. It is not unusual to see
40 or more bird species on a single boat trip including
the shoebill, Papyrus Gonolek, lesser Flamingo and the
Great snipe. Also look out for the Blue Grey Western Wall
of the Rift Valley. Lunch break, then proceed to Kampala.
Enroute to Kampala, look out for the white thighed hornbills,
Great blue Turaco and primates such as monkeys and olive
baboons. |
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