11 Days Uganda Tropical Forest Birding
11 Days Uganda Tropical Forest Birding: Take you to Uganda’s vast and varied bird habitats, primarily composed of deep forests with an unexpectedly large number of bird species, on this rain forest birding tour. Mabira Forest, The Royal Mile, Kaniyo Pabidi, Murchison Falls National Park, Semliki National Park, Kibale Forest National Park, and more locations will be visited during your vacation with Journeys Uganda’s knowledgeable, passionate, adaptable, and experienced bird guides. Surprisingly, even though the focus of our tour is on a few extraordinary and rare bird species, we will come across a greater variety of widely distributed bird species during our travels. Discover the hidden treasure among Uganda’s top woodland parks and you will enjoy an amazing birdwatching experience.
Day 1: Arrival and birding the Entebbe Botanical Gardens.
Arrive at Entebbe International Airport and transfer to the hotel. Depending on the time of arrival, on our 11 days Uganda tropical forest birding, we shall enjoy birding at Entebbe Botanical Gardens, home to numerous bird species such as Olive and Olive-bellied Sunbird, Yellow-billed and African Open-billed Stork, Pied, African Pygmy, and the Malachite Kingfisher, Orange and Yellow-backed Weaver, the Black and White Casqued Hornbill, Eastern Grey Plantain-eater, African Grey Parrot, Pale-throated Leaf Love, Great Reed Warbler, Pied and Crowned Hornbill, Sedge and Grey-capped Warbler, Northern-brown Throated Weaver, and the Great Blue and Ross’s Turaco, among others. Dinner and overnight at Jet Villas-Equivalent or Papyrus Guest House.
Day 2: 11 Days Uganda Tropical Forest Birding in Mabira Forest.
We will transfer to Mabira Forest after an early breakfast. Mabira Forest Reserve is home to numerous species that are rare in the heavily industrialised and populous towns of Jinja and Kampala. It is the largest remaining block of tropical semideciduous forest in Uganda, located near Kampala. Perhaps it is one of the best sites to go birding. On our birdwatching tour today, keep an eye out in the woodland for the Nahan’s Francolin, Purple-throated Cuckoo-shrike, Narina Trogon, the white-less winged Forest Wood-hoopoe, Cassin’s Hawk Eagle, eared, Buff-spotted, and Yellow Crested Woodpeckers, Olive-green Cameroptera, Red-capped, Blue Shouldered, and Snowy-crowned woodpeckers, Yellow-rumped, Yellow-throated, and Speckled Tinkerbirds, Grey and Yellow Longbills,
The following birds can be found in Mabira Forest: the large-tailed, almost spineless Cassine’s Spinetail, Sabine’s and Mottled Spinel, Black Bellied Seed-cracker, Blue-headed Blue-bill, Dwarf, Blue Breasted, and Shining-blue Kingfisher. The quiet, ground-dwelling dark brown robin-chat, Brown-chested Alethe and its counterpart, Fire-Crested Alethe, Chestnut and Jameson’s Wattle-eye, Little-green, the gorgeous greenish yellow banded Weyns’s Weaver, Yellow Mantled Weaver, Green-throated, Green, Orange Tufted and Superb Sunbird, Blue-throated Roller, and all of these species are found here. Spend the evening and over night at Rain Forest Lodge or Sunset Hotel
Day 3: Birding Mabira Forest—Transfer to Murchison Falls National Park.
After a hearty breakfast, you will continue your 11-days Uganda tropical forest birding safari by entering the Forest Reserve, one of the best places in Uganda to go birdwatching, in search of further forest bird species. Watch for a variety of wonderful birds today, such as the magnificent African Crowned Eagle soaring far above the canopy, the stunning African Pied Hornbill, and the magnificent Blue Turaco. We shall have lunch and transfer to Murchison Falls National Park. Along the way, keep an eye out for the Blue Spotted Dove, Giant Kingfisher, Bat Hawk, Black Cuckoo, Bateleur, Black-headed Gonolek, Blue-naped Mouse Bird, Black-winged Stilt, Black-shouldered Kite, Greater Blue-eared Starling, and African Fish Eagle, among others. Dinner and overnight at the Masindi Hotel.
Day 4: Birding to Budongo Forest, Kaniyo Pabidi.
After breakfast, we head out early for birdwatching in the southern section of Kaniyo Pabidi of Budongo Forest, which is an extension of Murchison Falls National Park. Among the many forest species we hope to see are Puvel’s Illadopsis, Narina Trogon, Fire Crested Allethe, Red-tailed Ant Thrush, Xavier’s, Plain and Little Greenbul, Dusky Long-tailed Cuckoo, African Emerald Cuckoo, Grey and Yellow Longbill, Collard, Olive, Olive Bellied and Little-green Sunbird, Fraser’s (Rufous) Flycatcher Thrush, Western Crested Guineafowl, Yellow-billed Barbet, Forest Robin, African Emerald Cuckoo, Chocolate-backed and Blue-breasted Kingfisher, Western Black-headed Oriole and many more forest species. After, we return to the Masindi Hotel for dinner and overnight.
Day 5: Birding to Budongo Forest, Royal Mile, and Busingiro in Murchison Falls National Park.
After breakfast, we begin our journey to our designated birding spot. En route, we will make several stops for birdwatching, where we will be on the lookout for grassland species such as Brown Twinspot, Cabanis’s Bunting, African (Dark-capped) Yellow Warbler, Red-collared Widowbird, Zebra and Fawn-breasted Waxbill, Brown Twinspot, Singing and Whistling Cisticola, Brown babbler, Black Bishop, Grassland Moustached Warbler and White-thighed Hornbill. Finally, we will conclude our birdwatching journey at the Royal Mile. Rare Ituri species, such as the African Pygmy, Dwarf and Chocolate-backed Kingfishers, Woodland Warbler, Lemon-bellied Crombec, Ituri Batis, Chestnut Capped Flycatcher, Blue-breasted Kingfishers, are consistently seen here during birdwatching excursions. Other species include the Rufous-crowned Eremomela, Cassin’s and Sabine’s Spinetail, Yellow-spotted, Yellow Billed, and Grey-headed (Throated) Barbet, Blue-throated Roller, Narina Trogon, Nahan’s Partridge, White-spotted Flufftail, as well as the Western Black-headed Oriole and Purple-headed Starling. For dinner and overnight at the Masindi Hotel.
Day 6: Birding to Kibale Forest with stopovers at Sebitoli Wetland.
After the early morning breakfast, travel to Kibale Forest and birdwatching will be conducted along the way at different stop over points. Expect to see bird species like the Joyful Greenbul, Western Black-headed Oriole, Blue-throated Roller, and Dusky Long-tailed Cuckoo, among others. After our lunch, we will proceed to Kibale Forest while birding, with a stopover at Sebitoli Wetland for a guided nature walk that will expose you to various bird species, such as the rare Green-breasted Pitta, Black-headed Paradise Flycatcher, Joyful Greenbul, African-shrike, Collared, Scarlet-chested, Green-headed, Green-throated and Eastern Olive sunbird, Green Hylia, Crowned Hornbills, among others. You will be transferred to the Chimpanzee Forest Lodge or Guereza Canopy Lodge for dinner and an overnight stay.
Day 7 & 8: whole-day birding and Chimp tracking Kibale Forest National Park.
Birdwatching is a great experience in Kibale Forest National Park, and it will expose you to White-tailed Ant-Thrush, Green-breasted Pitta, Red-winged Francolin, Grey-throated Flycatcher, White-spotted Flufftail, White-napped Pigeon, Joyful Greenbul, Purple-headed glossy, Red-capped, Blue-shouldered, and Grey-winged Robin-chat, White-tailed Ant-Thrush, Eastern Olive sunbirds, White-bellied Crested Flycatcher, Masked Apalis, Splendid Glossy, Chestnut-winged, and Stuhlmann’s Starling are some of the species we will be searching for. Great, Bronze, Green-headed, Olive-Bellied, Green, Green-throated, and White-collared Olivebacks and numerous others are small to medium-sized birds. In the afternoon, have lunch at the hotel and take a stroll around the premises or Bigodi Wetland, which provides opportunities to see Vieillot’s Black Weavers and Village Weavers, the majority of which are constantly constructing nests. This trail provides the best views of birds like the Great-blue Turaco, Black-and-white-shrike Flycatchers, White-headed Saw-wing, Black-headed Weaver, Snowy-headed Robin-Chat, Red-faced Cisticola, Yellow-rumped Tinkerbird, Black-and-white Mannikin, White-chinned Prinia, Little and Joyful Greenbul, Yellow-spotted, Yellow-billed, and Hairy-breasted Barbet, Black-headed Paradise Flycatcher, African-shrike, Green Hylia, Buff-spotted Woodpecker, This is where the White-spotted Flufftail usually appears best when there are not many raindrops. Collared, Green-throated, Scarlet-chested, and Green-headed Sunbirds, Black-necked Weavers, among others. Along the boardwalk and across the swamp, keep an eye out for the Papyrus Gonolek, White-winged Warbler, Common Waxbill, Shining-blue Kingfisher, Grey-winged Robin-chat, and other primate species such as the Red-tailed, Grey-cheeked Mangabey, Vervet, Red Colobus, Black and White Colobus, and L’hoest’s monkeys. Afterward, return to the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 9, 10: Birding Semliki Forest and the Kirumia trail.
Being one of the richest for both flora and fauna in Africa, most especially the special Guinea Congo-biome endemic species. We shall embark on two days birding in this place. We aim at a record of 400 species, including; the Congo Serpent Eagle, Yellow-throated Green Cuckoo, African Piculet, Black-billed Dwarf, and the very sensitive and shy White-crested, Red-Billed Dwarf, Piping, White-thighed and Black-wattled Casqued Hornbills, Blue Swallow, White-throated Blue Swallow, Swamp Palm Bulbul, Spotted Greenbul, White-starred Robin, Lowland Akalat, Red-throated Alethe, Fire-crested Alethe, Snowy-headed Robin-Chat, Blue-shouldered Robin-Chat, Chocolate-backed, White-b Gabon Woodpecker, Red-eyed Puffback, White-tailed Robin-Chat, Northern Bearded Scrub-Robin, Capped Wheatear, Common Stonechat, Abyssinian Ground-Thrush, Oberlaender’s Ground-Thrush, Grey Ground-Thrush, Little Grey Greenbul, Toro Olive Greenbul, Mountain Greenbul, Yellow-throated Nicator and others.
Other birds include the Western Nicator, Purple-throated Cuckoo-shrike, Petit’s Cuckoo-shrike, Black Saw-wing, Eurasian Oystercatcher, Long-tailed Hawk, Red-thighed Sparrowhawk, Chestnut-flanked Goshawk, Grant’s Bluebill, Afep Pigeon, Blue-headed Coucal, Bates’s Nightjar, Swamp Nightjar, Cassin’ Spinetail, Sabine’s Spinetail, White-bellied Kingfisher, Chocolate-backed Kingfisher, Shining-blue Kingfisher, Gabon Woodpecker, Hairy-breasted Barbet, Yellow-billed Barbet, Double-toothed Barbet, Rufous-sided Broadbill, White-throated blue Swallow if you get close the oxbow lakes, Orange-tufted Sunbird, Yellow-eyed (Green-tailed) Bristlebill, Swamp Palm, Xavier’s, Simple and Eastern Bearded Greenbul, Yellow-throated Nicator, the disturbing and hard-to-see but easy-to-hear Capuchin Babbler, Grey-ground Thrush, Lemon-bellied Crombec, Rufous-crowned Eremomela, Ituri Batis, the very seasonal Red-billed Helmet-Shrike, Chestnut-breasted Nigrita (Negrofinch), Northern-bearded Scrub Robin, Fiery-breasted Bush-shrike, Black-winged Oriole, Black-bellied Seedcracker, Red-eyed Puffback, Chestnut-winged Starling, Maxwell’s Black Weaver, Blue-billed, Crested and Red-bellied Malimbes, Pale-Fronted and Grant’s blue bill, and others. Have dinner and stay overnight at UWA Bandas.
Day 11: Depature-Transfer to Entebbe International Airport.