Uganda - In Search of the Shoebill

This birdwatching tour packs in some of Uganda’s finest and most diverse birdwatching sites including Lake Mburo, Queen Elizabeth and Kibale Forest National Parks as well as Uganda’s best Shoebill location, the Mabamba Wetlands. The tour uses the best located lodges and hotels to optimise birdwatching potential, which are simple, and occasionally luxurious, in nature. The equatorial climate in Uganda remains stable all year round, with slight seasonal variations in rainfall. Most of Uganda is on a plateau at 900 - 1,800 metres above sea level. It is comfortably hot most of the time and rain showers are common, but do not hinder the birding. Average daytime temperatures are in the mid 20s Centigrade. These climatic factors also help to explain why all visitors are struck by just how green, fertile and beautiful Uganda is, which again is reflected in its abundant birdlife.

The Shoebill is one of the world's most remarkable birds. Standing just over a metre tall, it is endowed with staring yellow eyes and the most extraordinary, enormous clog-shaped bill. Shoebills stand patiently for hours waiting for a large fish — especially lungfish and catfish —  to swim into view, at which point they dive forward and snatch the fish, water and all. Despite being fairly widespread in central Africa, this prehistoric-looking bird is very localised and highly secretive, making it difficult to find. The Mabamba Swamp, not far from Uganda's capital, Kampala, is one of the few places where Shoebills are regularly seen and a visit to this large papyrus-edged lake — which is also home to an abundance of other waterbirds — is one of the highlights of this 10-day birdwatching tour.

We start the holiday with a flight to Entebbe, to the south of Kampala, and a night near the airport, although there should be time for a visit to the Entebbe Botanical Gardens and our first Ugandan birds such as Ross's Turaco, Black-and-white Casqued Hornbill, Woodland Kingfisher and Eastern Plantain-eater. Guereza Colobus are likely too.

The following morning we will take our boat trip out into the Mabamba  Swamp in search of the tour's star bird, the Shoebill, and then continue on to Lake Mburo National Park for a two night stay. Even before we reach the park gates, we will see our first game animals such as Plains Zebra, Eland and Common Waterbuck. A boat trip on the lake will offer numerous Pied Kingfishers, but we will be particularly hoping to find the skulking African Finfoot. The dry bushland surrounding Lake Mburo is home to Crested Francolin, Blue-naped Mousebird, Common Scimitarbill, Yellow-throated Longclaw, Red-headed Lovebird, Green-capped Eremomela and a host of others, whilst in the papyrus swamps we hope to find Greater Swamp Warbler, Northern Brown-throated Weaver and the colourful Papyrus Gonolek.