Not as popular as the here above Mabamba Swamp thus less travelled by birders, the place is less disturbed and more favourable for birds, especially the very shy Shoebill. In the same area as Mabamba on Lake Victoria there is also Makanaga Bay. Simply a must for every bird watcher or an exciting excursion if you want to discover how a swamp is alike. Mabamba Wetlands is available as a half-day trip. Our local guide, Kasasa Hannington, a major key player in the protection of this Important Bird Area (IBA), told us that there are four shoebills left in Mabamba and that he's claiming back "his" two other shoebills from the Authorities! If you miss the shoebill at Mabamba we drive you to the Wildlife Education Centre. One died and the two others have been confiscated and brought to the Wildlife Education Centre at Entebbe. Last year a local poacher caught 3 shoebills. We are getting more experienced and the local community is organised and protects the swamp. Our average success rate is now more than 70 %. Not everybody is that lucky but some clients have seen the bird three or four times on the same excursion. This is a very important tool when you know that shoebills live in areas which are generally difficult of access.
On the shores of Lake Victoria you have a fascinating wetland where we take our clients with our canoe (Canadian type). See the Magic Safaris Video about Mabamba We advise you to spot the bird in Mabamba wetlands, about 45 km from Kampala in Mpigi district. Our experience tells that you don’t need to travel that far to see the shoebill.
It might be the best place to see the shoebill when travelling to Murchison Falls, it’s not the only site where the shoebill has been recorded. Philip Brigs tells in the Uganda, Bradt Travel Guide, that (Murchison Falls NP): " the Lake Albert delta is favoured by bird watchers as offering perhaps the best opportunity to see shoebills anywhere in Africa." The areas around the River Nile and Lake Albert are usually indicated as popular sites to spot the shoebill. Uganda has 17 % of its surface covered by fresh water lakes, rivers and swamps and it's probably for this reason that Uganda is one of the best places to see the stork. Shoebills generally keep to the more open areas, to avert problems with take-off that pure papyrus and tall grass would cause. With his yellow eyes the bird has also a violent appearance.ĭo you know that the shoebill stork can live up to 36 years? Shoebills prefer swamps and in particular vegetation formed but not exclusively, by papyrus. Long in the leg and broad in the wing, standing well over a meter twenty high and dressed in blue-grey. The bird is so impressive and without doubt the most extraordinary bird to discover in Uganda!Īs its name suggests his bill is quite big (30 cm x 10 cm) with the structure of a human foot that ends in a ferocious nail-like hook. You don’t need to be a bird watcher or an ornithologist to get excited when you see it. The shoebill gained the name of “the most sought-after” of all the birds of the African continent. The shoebill stork (Balaeniceps rex) is one of the great bird species in Africa and certainly one of the major challenges in bird watching.