In May/June of 2009, I and four other Americans traveled to Uganda for a three week nature safari focused on birds and other wildlife.  Needless to say, we weren’t disappointed.  During our tour we saw nearly five hundred species of birds.  Despite this being my fourth birding trip to Africa, over two hundred of these were new species for me.  Many of these birds are range-restricted or difficult to see elsewhere.  A number of these birds were seen along the western border where the Congo rainforest ecosystem “spills over” into Uganda. 

In addition to the birding, I was pleasantly surprised by our mammal sightings.  While Uganda doesn’t have the numbers and diversity of animals as in Kenya, this is compensated for by a lower level of tourist “interference”.  When I saw a leopard in Kenya, it was surrounded by over twenty other safari vehicles.  When we saw a leopard near the gorgeous Mweya Lodge in Queen Elizabeth NP, we were the only vehicle present. 

The highlight of Ugandan mammals undoubtedly is the mountain gorilla.  In Uganda, it lives on steep, heavily vegetated slopes in Bwindi Impenetrable NP.  Trust me, the park deserves its name!  There are fewer than eight hundred of these magnificent animals left in the wild.  Populations also live in Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Our host in Uganda was Herbert Byaruhanga of Bird Uganda.  Herbert is a very knowledgeable and energetic guide.  He worked diligently to ensure that we saw our target species and had a great time in his country.  It was also clear in his interactions with park officials, lodge owners, and other tour leaders that he is very well respected by his peers.

Areas that we visited included;

-         Mabamba Swamp (near Kampala)

-         Murchison Falls National Park

-         Budongo Forest

-         Kibale National Park

-         Semliki National Park

-         Queen ElizabethNational Park

-         Bwindi Impenetrable National Park

-         Lake Mburo National Park

Our route is marked on the map below in "green".

This gallery contains some of the general travel photos from our tour.

Photos of birds and animals seen on the tour are located at