Bird species in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park

Bird species in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park: Besides mountain gorillas, Bwindi’s impenetrable forest national park is home to many beautiful bird species. Bwindi is one of the best national parks to go bird watching in Uganda with over 350 bird species 23 of which are said to be Albertine endemics. The national park has four sectors (Buhoma, Ruhija, Nkuringo, and Rushaga) where tourists can carry out bird watching.

Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park is one of the best birding destinations in the southwestern part of Uganda with over 350 bird species. The park is dominated by numerous vegetation types which are homes and sources of food to different bird species within the region. Bwindi bird species are classified as forest birds with a few being endemic to the Albertine region.

Bird species in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park

Grauer’s broadbill, little green sunbird, shelley’s crimsonwing, grauer’s swamp warbler, western green tinkerbird, handsome francolin, African emerald cuckoo, regal sunbird, while tailed blue flycatcher, handsome spurfowl, white starred robin, mountain yellow warbler, African water rail, white-browed crombec, red chested flufftail, Rwenzori night jar, bar tailed trogon, blue headed sunbird, little green sunbird.

African stonechat, black-faced apalis, sooty flycatcher, black bee-eater, Rwenzori hill babbler, Albertine boubou, purple breasted sunbird, neumann’s warbler, ross’s turaco, cinnamon bracken warbler, dusky tit, dwarf honeyguide, tit hylia, Rwenzori batis, fine banded woodpecker, carruthers’s cisticola, chapin’s flycatcher, great blue turaco, African black dark, red chested fufftail, yellow-eyed black flycatcher, barred long tailed cuckoo.

Stripe breasted tit, red-faced woodland warbler, western citril, fine banded woodpecker, klaas’s cuckoo, tambourine dove, grey chested kakamega, Rwenzori apalis, red-tailed greenbul, sooty falcon, grey cuucko shrike, sharpe’s starling, ansorge’s honeyguide, banded prinia, strip breasted tit, cape wagtail, equatorial akalat, red-tailed bristlebill, velvet mantled drongo, yellow spotted barbet, joyful greenbul.

African emerald cuckoo, mountain illadopsis, chestnut throated apalis, slender-billed starling, northern puff back, brown-capped weaver, red-headed malimbe, white-headed saw wing, dark capped bulbul, red-headed bluebill, jameson’s ant pecker, grey winged robin chat, bocage’s bush shrike, black billed turaco

African broadbill, yellow-throated tinkerbird, black-faced rufous warbler, white-headed wood hoopoe, double-toothed barbet, many colored bush shrike, hairy breasted barbet, grey cuckoo shrike, western bronze naped pigeon, scaly breasted illadopsis, thick-billed seedeater, black-throated apalis, western black-headed oriole, olive green camaroptera, blue shouldered robin chat, and pink-footed puff back to mention but a few.

How to see birds of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park

Birds of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest are best seen during nature walk activities through trails best known for bird watching. Bamboo zone, Buhoma waterfall trail, and Mubwindi swamp are the best birding trails within the park. With a well-trained birding guide, passing through these trails gives one an opportunity to see more than half of the recorded bird species in case they have enough time in the park.

Best time to see birds of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park

The best time to see birds of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park is the dry season which happens from June to September and December to February. This is a period when the park is receiving little or no rainfall and so the birders will find the walking trails dry and passable and the vegetation short and scattered with good views of the birds.

Bird watching within Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park is best done during the morning and evening hours when the sunshine is not too hot. November to April is also the best time for birding and this is because there are lots of migratory birds within the park. So many bird species find a lot of food during this period when most of the plants are flowering.

Birders can still visit Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park to see the different bird species during the rainy season which occurs from March to May and October to November. This period is characterized by plenty of rainfall and little sunshine leading to bad weather. The walking trails are muddy and slippery, vegetation tends to be tall with unclear views of some bird species and roads to the park are in poor conditions.

How much does it cost to see the birds of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park?

A birder needs a birding permit and park entrance fees to look out for different bird species in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park. The birding fee in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park is $40 for foreign non-residents, $30 for foreign residents, and UGX30,000 citizens of East African member states. Park entrance fee to Bwindi is $40 for foreign non-residents, $30 for foreign residents, and UGX20,000 citizens of East African Member states.

How to get to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park

Bwindi impenetrable forest national park is either accessed by road transport or air transport within a single day. From Kigali to Bwindi tourists use any road transport means however those from Entebbe/Kampala have two options which are road transport or air transport.

By road from Kigali, tourists drive to Bwindi National Park by crossing via Kyanika border to the park. From Entebbe/Kampala tourists drive via Mpigi, Masaka, Lyantonde, Mbarara, Ntungamo, Kabale or Kisoro to any sector of the park. The journey from Kigali to Bwindi is about 4 hours while that from Entebbe to Bwindi is around 9 to 10 hours.

Air transport is the quickest way tourists can get to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park even though it’s a bit costly. The flights take less than 2 hours and driving to the lodges is 1 to 2 hours depending on its location. Flights from Entebbe or Kajjansi can head to Kisoro airstrip for those visiting the southern sector of the park and Kihihi airstrip for those visiting the northern sector of the park.