Uganda Tour Companies Trained in Bird Watching

Uganda which is the size of the British Isle has a very large number bird species some of which are endemic to the Country like the fox weaver bird. Uganda has over 1,047 bird species in all and offers great birding safari opportunities for the avid birder. Lack of proper marketing of the sector coupled with a few quality Uganda birding guides has limited the development of bird watching in Uganda. In comparison the United States sees over 80 million bird watchers annually compared to Uganda which more bird species.

The Uganda Wildlife Authority has however recognized the importance of birding and has now started putting emphasis on training birding guides as well as many young people and Uganda tour Company operators.

According to Mr. Masaba Steven the Acting Director of Uganda Wildlife Authority who is in charge of Tourism Uganda – The Pearl of Africa has the largest population of birds in the whole of the continent.

Of all the bird species found in Africa 50% can be found in Uganda and 10% of the bird species in the whole World.

About 50 birding guides were passed out at the Kibale forest national park which has the Makerere University Biological field station in Fort Portal.

Uganda’a bird watching potential if properly marketed can help generate lots of income which would rival chimpanzee tracking and gorilla tracking which are the leading tour attractions in Uganda. It would also help create employment and boost the Country’s economy.

There are efforts underway to help create bird trails as well as map out bird watching sites in many of the protected areas to help boost the sector.

Gorilla Naming Ceremony

The success of gorilla conservation in Uganda and Rwanda has led to increased revenue from mountain gorilla safari to both these countries. In Rwanda this success led to the initiation of a ceremony; in 2005, the Rwanda office of Tourism and National parks officially launched a ceremony; "Kwita Izina", a baby gorilla naming event equivalent to the cultural ceremonies the people use when naming their new born babies. That is how important the then head of the body charged with protecting wildlife especially the conservation of mountain gorillas viewed the birth of these endangered species. It was officially inaugurated by His Excellence Paul Kagame the president of the Republic of Rwanda when two baby gorillas born to the same mother were Christened in a grand ceremony making the birth of the first gorillas born in the wild since the conservation efforts began.

Since then many dignitaries, including Hollywood stars, ambassadors, renown people from well known television channels like Discovery and Animal Planet have since graced these wonderful event. During the events many people from within Rwanda and the international community gather in a what the ORTPN; Rwanda Office of Tourism and National parks terms as a celebration of the conservation efforts and community development success. The event is marked with great cultural performances such as the graceful Kinyarwanda dance with priests and the press in great numers.

Conservation has led to the growth of tourism in Rwanda enabling gorilla tracking, wildlife protection and increased revenue. This is also true for Uganda unlike the Democratic Republic of Congo which is still have political issues in the eastern region where the mountain gorillas found around its border with Uganda and Rwanda.

However in Uganda, the conservation efforts are being set back with the increasing need of land for cultivation to support the increasing population and the allocation of wetlands and protected areas to investors.

For your gorilla safari to Uganda and Rwanda there are number of tour operators that can arrange for you to track these gentle, majestic giants that number less than 800 in the wild. The money from these gorilla tours enable the respective governments ensure the protection of these endangered species of primates and also the development of the communities around the protected areas in these regions.

For more information on Rwanda gorilla naming ceremony

Your can visit some of these sites for :

• 3 day gorilla safari
• Uganda gorilla tour
  
• Rwanda gorilla trekking
• Uganda gorilla tour
• gorilla tours Africa

For accommodation options in East Africa.

1. Uganda safari lodges
2. Kenya hotels
3. Tanzania hotels
   

African Grey Parrots Smugglers Arrested: Uganda Birding

Uganda has one of the highest numbers of bird species in the World given its position geographically. It lies astride the equator with both tropical and savannah vegetations. Bird watching in Uganda however is not such a highly promoted sector of tourism. The local Uganda tour operators are trying to change this however.

The Uganda Wildlife Authority last month impounded another 142 African grey parrots just a week after another 132 parrots were recovered from suspected smugglers at Mpondwe a border post in the district of Kasese. The birds were found in such poor shape and condition that they had to be taken for rehabilitation at the former Zoo now known as the Uganda Wildlife Educational Center – UWEC as they care out investigations to have the culprits arrested. The Wildlife body is trying to ascertain whether the suspects have the right documents which allows them to have the birds in their possession. wildlife tours

The Uganda Wildlife Authority chief executive Dr. Andrew Sseguya said these second number of birds was found along Entebbe road at Kawuku. It is not clear whether it is the same group of smugglers that are involved.

Smugglers From Democratic Republic of Congo
In January over 132 endemic African grey parrots from the Democratic Republic of Congo were seized as woman tried to smuggle them into Uganda through the Mpondwe border post which is point through which most the smugglers of wildlife to Europe and Asian lucrative markets pass from the DRC. Wildlife safari

The birds had been fed sugarcane which was spiked with alcohol according the Uganda Wildlife Authority officials so as to make them drowsy during the border crossing. The woman was found to be possessing a fake license and permit to transport the birds as the immigration officials at the Uganda – DR Congo border post stopped him. Rwanda gorilla safari

In 2010, 9 rare African grey parrots found in possession of a Libyan delegate at the International Airport Entebbe.

For your Uganda birding tours as well as African birding safaris destinations such as Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania

Kibaale National Park Chimpanzee Tracking Thrills

Uganda is endowed with some of the most bio-diverse national parks in the World with over 13 national parks and game reserves. Each of them is unique with different major attractions. Kibale forest national park for instance has the highest density of primates in the World where as Bwindi impenetrable forest national park is renown for its population of mountain gorillas. Bwindi has the largest number of mountain gorillas in the World.

Martin Ssebuyira writes about his experience with chimps in Kibale forest national park.
It was a very surreal experience tracking man’s ‘cousins’ and seeing the way they feed, climb trees, respond to humans and care for their young ones, writes Martin Ssebuyira.

Chimpanzee tracking is one of the most loved activities at Kibaale National Park in Kamwenge District, attracting tourists from various countries around the world.

It was on November 1 that I made up my mind to visit the park and experience this famed thrill. I couldn’t contain my excitement as I boarded a bus to Fort Portal town, where I took a special hire to the park in Kamwenge. Here, one is free to tromp through the rainforest jungles, making their own paths as they follow the guides.

At first, we were given gumboots to enable us trail through the forest with ease, then issued instructions on how to behave in the forest when trailing our “closest relatives”. “There are 90 per cent chances of viewing the chimpanzees either by luck, following sounds of the troops moving through forests, or going to their usual camps,” our guide, Geoffrey Tazenya, let on.

We then walked through the thick rain forest for close to three hours while the guides kept communicating to each other on radio calls to find the exact location of the chimpanzees.

After a two-hour trek, I took a sigh of relief when we heard sounds of the troops communicating to each other, but became horrified as we drew near the troops, fearing they could trounce on us. “They are quite habituated to human presence, so they do not run as we walk nearby, but do not mimic them, get near them or eat in their presence because this could provoke them,” Tazenya warned.

We then left the forest trails to meet the chimp groups. One of the females was quite obviously in heat and there was much commotion as the males vied for her attention.

Tazenya explained that the female chimp could reject any suitor she wished, and we saw it happen as she fought off the advances of the 40-year-old grey-chinned Mobuto, named after the Congolese dictator Mobuto Ssese Seko because he is the head of this particular tribe and bullies his mates. The brush-off was loud and intense and took place with such a flurry of motion that capturing it on camera was impossible.

We saw several adorable babies perched on the backs of their mothers but they too were very difficult to photograph as the light in the dense forest was quite dim. We had to leave soon because after sighting a tribe, visitors were only allowed to watch them for one hour.

The most accessible of Uganda’s major rainforests, Kibaale is home to a remarkable 13 primate species, including the much localised red colobus and Lhotse’s monkey.

John Batandashi, the head guide, said Kibaale’s major attraction is the opportunity to track these delightful apes and watch as they squabble and play in fruit trees, adding that a network of shady forest trails provides much to delight botanists and butterfly lovers, while birders are in for a treat with 335 species available including the endemic Prigogine’s Ground Thrush.

The elusive forest elephant, smaller and hairier than its savannah counterpart, moves seasonally into the developed part of the park, while other terrestrial mammals include buffalos, giant forest hogs and a half dozen antelope species. “We get about 36 tourists per day who track the chimps in groups of two,” Bantandashi said, adding that tourists are required to obtain a tracking permit from Uganda Wildlife Authority in Kampala at Shs55,000 and entry fee at Shs5,000.

A chimpanzees’ day starts at 6:30a.m as they leave their nests to have breakfast and start moving through the forest to look for food. They then rest to groom each other as others mate. After this break, they have lunch, rest again, then move in groups of 20 until they find an appropriate place for nesting at around 6p.m. “Chimpanzees have a great phorbia for snakes and run upon seeing them, but will fight and kill any chimp foreign to a group, unless it’s a female without a male baby. If it has a male baby, the baby is killed for fear that it could take over their females,” said Batandashi. gorilla tracking

About 20 metres from the park’s main gate are fairly large families of baboons, but tourists are usually more interested in the chimps because tracking them is thrilling.
Source: Monitor Publications
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Animals From Queen Elizabeth national Park Destroy Crops

ANIMALS from Queen Elizabeth National Park have destroyed over 500 acres of crops in Rubirizi district, local authorities have confirmed.

Dominic Bakesima, the chairperson of Kasisa-Kagogo farmers’ Forum in Kichwamba sub-county, named the most hit villages as Kasisa and Kagogo in Kichwamba sub-county in Katerera county.

The animals, mostly elephants, destroyed banana plantations.
Bakesima said on Thursday that the two villages have gardens for people from the neighbouring villages.

He said they had appealed to the Uganda Wildlife Authority and the district leadership for help in vain.

“The locals have threatened to stage a peaceful demonstration and boycott the coming elections if nothing is done to rescue the situation,” Bakesima said.

Dinavensi Ndijunwoha, a farmer in Kagogo village, said the area MP, Gaudiosio Tindamanyire, promised to help fence the areas neighbouring the park two years ago but nothing has been done.

Ndijunwoha said many people deserted farming and were redundant, noting that this was likely to cause famine in the area.

The Kichwamba sub-county LC3 chairperson, Philly Masiko, said over 40 people were admitted in dispensaries for malaria contracted from the park as they were guarding their crops from the animals.

Masiko said over 140 farmers cultivate in the villages near the park. He appealed to the disaster preparedness ministry to provide food to the affected people.
END

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UWA took the right decision on officials

I am not surprised that the managers of the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) have been suspended and one of them sacked.

There is a public outcry about the way UWA runs its business. I have read about incidents where wild animals are shot by rangers and the public share the meat.

Many people have called UWA to rescue animals without any response. The organisation has no department to help communities that live near protected areas. Many Ugandans have been killed by crocodiles, elephants, buffalos and leopards without any intervention by UWA. UWA had completely lost track.

You can tell this by looking at the organisational structure. A wildlife authority should have at least a laboratory for early detection of diseases like anthrax which has killed many hippos. It should have a very effective veterinary department and a well-equipped capture department that can handle problem animals.

The management of UWA has been putting more emphasis on their personal interest than the interests of Ugandans. I do not blame the UWA board for the steps taken. However, those who are innocent should be called back.
Uganda safari

Zakayo to mark 46th birthday

Preparations to celebrate the 46th birthday of the oldest alpha male Chimpanzee at the Uganda Wildlife Educational Centre are under way. According to officials at the centre, a huge cake has been made for the ageing chimpanzee while its keepers are teaching it table manners for the occasion to be witnessed by UWEC staff, conservationists and students on Saturday.

“The chimpanzee has been trained to use a sharp stick to cut posho in preparation for its birthday,’’ Ms Belinda Atim, the UWEC spokesperson, told Daily Monitor yesterday.
She said the keepers would first talk to invited guests on the importance of chimp conservation while focusing on Zakayo’s history and personality.

“Zakayo will first be let out of the holding facility into the island with Acan, the youngest member of the family and later cut his cake while children invited from various schools sing for him,” said Ms Atim.

She said a few members of the public will get an opportunity to feed Zakayo with fruits while other schools would be singing chimp conservation songs and reciting poems. A quiz competition has also been organised where winners will walk away with various prizes.

Zakayo has been a protective and fatherly primate to young chimps, especially Onapa, Aluma and Shaka. He is ‘married’ to Amina and Ruth and likes spending hours resting, grooming or being groomed by one of his two wives.

If you want to track chimpanzees in the wild click these links;

• chimp trekking


• chimp trekking in Ngamba Island