Bird watching in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park

Birdwatching in Bwindi Forest, one of Uganda’s best places to go birdwatching. Of the 350 bird species found in the park, 23 are endemic species to the Albertine Rift. Bwindi National Park is an impenetrable forest located in Kisoro region of southwest Uganda. In order to save the various wildlife species that were there at the time, especially birds, the park was gazetted in 1993.

Birdwatching in Bwindi Forest

Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park is well-known for sheltering endangered mountain gorillas, which are native to both Bwindi and the Virunga Conservation Area. The majority of visitors to the park go on gorilla treks to see these gorillas going about their everyday lives in their natural habitat. Although Bwindi is well-known for its mountain gorillas, the park is also one of the best places in the country for birdwatchers to see up to 350 different species.

What are the bird species to see in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest?

Shelly’s crimson wing, Lagen’s bush shrike, many-colored bush shrike, grauer’s swamp warbler, archer robin chat, grauer’s warbler, regal sunbird, Willard’s sooty boubou, dusky crimson wing, nueman’s warbler, African golden breasted bunting, oriole finch, African olive-pigeon, European honey buzzard, Stuhlmann’s starling, archer’s robin-chat, speckled mouse bird, pin tailed whydah, Mackinnon’s shrike, tambourine dove.

Rwenzori batis, African goshawk, grey-crowned crane, snowy-crowned robin-chat, yellow-fronted canary, blue-spotted wood dove, Jameson’s antpecker, cape wagtail, African citril, woolly-necked stork, purple-breasted sunbird, black bee-eater, toro olive greenbul, olive-breasted greenbul, red-chested flufftail, giant kingfisher, and brown-capped weaver

Lizard buzzard, African dusky flycatcher, marabou stork, Carruthers’s cisticola, Angolan swallow, scarce swift, zebra waxbill, little grebe, white-headed saw-wing, dwarf honeyguide, Rwenzori nightjar, red-capped robin chat, doherty’s bush-shrike, African paradise flycatcher, magpie manikin, Diederik cuckoo, black swift, waller’s starling, grey wagtail, and African flycatcher-chat.

African hill babbler; white-throated greenbul; hairy-breasted barbet; western nector; white-spotted flufftail, chapin’s flycatcher; helmeted guinea fowl; mountain wagtail; western green tinkerbird, green combec; shikra, Oberlander’s ground thrush, dusky twin spot; arrow-marked babbler; yellow-fronted canary; marsh tchagra; African pygmy kingfisher; sooty falcon; brown-chested alethe; woolly-necked stork; and red-knobbed coot.

Plain-backed pipit, icterine warbler, green hylia, fine-banded woodpecker, rock martin, blue-billed teal, brown illadopsis, forest robin, equatorial akalat, scaly-throated honeyguide, barred long-tailed cuckoo, cattle egret, yellow-streaked greenbul, white-winged tit, cassin’s flycatcher, alpine swift, grosbeak weaver, buff-spotted woodpecker, woodhouse’s anti-pecker, Luhder’s bush-shrike, and palm nut vulture.

Ayres’s hawk-eagle, chestnut-throated apalis, banded prinia, petit’s cuckoo-shrike, short-tailed warbler, black crake, willcocks’s honey guide, hadada ibis, ross’s turaco, singing cisticola, African hawk eagle, elliot’s woodpecker, horus swift, copper sunbird, mottled swift, little grebe, grey-checked hornbill, klaas’s cuckoo, pink-footed puff back, buff-spotted flufftail, crested guinea fowl, African wood-owl, bocage’s bush-shrike, and Eurasian hobby to mention but a few

Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park’s top birdwatching trails

Birdwatchers must use the best birding trails in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park in order to see the majority of the bird species. The best birding guides and armed ranger guides walk birders through these pathways and make sure that they see most of the birds listed in the park. The best birding spots in the park are Mubwindi Swamp, Bamboo Zone, Buhoma Waterfall Trail, and the Main Birding Trail in Bwindi.

When is the best time to go bird watching in Uganda

In Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, every day is a birding day. The only thing birders need to know is when to visit the park for birding. The ideal times to go birdwatching in Bwindi are in the morning and possibly late at night. Birdwatchers have a good chance of seeing park bird species feeding various fruits, seeds, and aquatic plants throughout these periods.

The weather is excellent for those who want to go birdwatching in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest during the dry season, which runs from June to September and December to February. There is always lots of sunshine and little or no rainfall during these months. The majority of the birding places are accessible to birders because the walking trails are easier to navigate and dry.

Tourists who would conduct out bird watching in Bwindi during the rainy season from March to May and October to November shall find the places in a rainy season. Because there is so much food available, there will be a lot of birds in the park. However, visitors should be aware that this is a rainy season and that rain is likely to occur at any time of day. The birding routes tend to be muddy and treacherous, which limits access to some forest regions.

Things to bring when observing birds

You must be aware of every requirement for a good bird-watching trip before you visit to any destination. Waterproof hiking shoes, long cotton stocks, long sleeves, a rainy jacket, a backpack, binoculars, a camera, a voice recorder, a telescope, a birding guide, sunscreen, insect repellent, a drinking water bottle, and energy-boosting snacks are just a few of the necessities needed for bird watching.