Rare and Endangered Birds in Mabamba Wetland
Rare and Endangered Birds in Mabamba Wetland, a Ramsar site with its great biodiversity and popularity for birdwatching experience, is one of Uganda’s few exceptional Ramsar Sites. Located west of Entebbe Town, Kasanje Village, along the shores of Lake Victoria, Africa’s largest lake and the second-largest freshwater lake globally. The marsh is a unique place to go birdwatching and is home to a variety of bird species, including rare, endangered, and distinctive birds.
On the banks of Lake Victoria, the wetland spans roughly 2424 hectares. Its biodiversity is enhanced by papyrus reeds and open marshy areas. The greatest concentration of shoebills in Africa can be found near Mabamba Bay, a popular tourist destination. It is an Important Bird Area (IBA), a wetland of international importance, and home to more than 300 bird species.
What makes the Mabamba Wetland special?
Several nature lovers and birders are attracted to Mabamba Swamp in search of the elusive Shoebill stork, one of the most iconic attractions in Uganda’s leading birdlife wetland. The wetland is home to over 300 bird species, but the globally threatened shoebill stands out as the highlight.
This sought-after bird, which resembles a dinosaur, is secretive, fascinating, and has an odd and mysterious physical appearance. It is distinguished by its large, jagged, unbalanced, yellow beak. Many travelers find this iconic Shoebill due to its secretive nature as a fierce bird species that resembles the ancient structure of the dinosaurs from the Mesozoic Era.
Hundreds of enthusiastic birdwatchers travel to Uganda to target these huge birds since many nature lovers and birdwatchers believe shoebills to be quite interesting.
Bird Species in Mabamba Wetland
With its distinctive and appealing birds, mostly aquatic, Mabamba Wetland is primarily a bird-watching destination. In addition to the well-known shoebill, the wetland is home to a variety of unusual birds, including the African Jacana, Blue Swallow, African Pygmy Goose, Long-toed Lapwing, Blue-cheeked Bee-eater, and water-dwelling raptors such as the Osprey and Palm-nut vulture.
Other birds to see include the Cattle Egret, Great Blue Turaco, Little Egret, Ruppell’s Long-tailed Sterling, Common Bulbul, Grey-headed Sparrow, Black-winged Stilt, Papyrus Yellow Warbler, Pied Kingfishers, Ashy Flycatcher, Pallid Harrier, and Papyrus Gonolek. Pink-tailed Whydah, Red-billed Firefinch, Black-crowned Night Heron, Pink-backed Pelican, Pied Wagtail, Cormorants, Grey Woodpecker, Grey Crowned Crane, Rufous-naped Lark, Wood Sandpiper, Purple Swamp Hen, White-shouldered Tit, Feral Pigeon, Grey-headed Kingfisher, Carruthers’s Cisticola, Goliath Heron, White-winged Tern, White-browed Cuckoo, Black-headed Woodland Kingfisher, Red-eyed Dove, Rufous-bellied Heron, Black-crowned Waxbill, Flappet Lark, African Green Pigeon, Grey Parrot, Eurasian Hobby, Glossy Ibis, Yellow-rumped Tinkerbird, Yellow Wagtail, Black-headed Heron, Intermediate Egret, Angola Swallows, Yellow-billed Kite, Common Squacco Heron.
Blue-breasted Bee-eater, Brown Parrot, African Pied Wagtail, Yellow-billed Stork, Common Waxbill, Malachite Kingfisher, Orange Weaver, Swamp-hen, Winding Cisticola, Long-crested Eagle, Yellow-billed Duck, Red-shouldered Cuckoo Shrike, Grey Wagtail, Grey Heron, Slender-billed Gull, Green Cuckoo, Sand Martin, Crowned Hornbill, Ross’s Turaco, Northern Brown-throated Weaver, Long-toed Lapwing, African Hoopoe, Yellow-backed Weaver, Black-headed Gonolek, African Common Moorhen, Banded Martin, White-faced Whistling Duck, Olivaceous Warbler, African Purple, Great White Egret, Grassland Pipit, Long-tailed Cormorant, Purple Heron.
Shining Blue Kingfisher, Red-chested Cuckoo, Marsh Harrier, Great White Pelican, Slender-billed Weaver, Papyrus Canary, African Fish Eagle, African Water Rail, White-winged Warbler, Fork-tailed Drongo, Great Cormorant, Saddle-billed Stork, Mosque Swallow, Spur-winged Lapwing, White-throated Bee-eater, Water Thick-knee, Weyn’s Weaver, Whiskered Tern, Eastern Grey Plantain-eater, Grey-rumped Sparrow, Red-headed Lovebird, Common Stonechat, White-browed Cuckoo, Fan-tailed Widowbird, Common Greenshank, Common Sandpiper, Black-faced Rufous Warbler, Fulvous Whistling Duck, Yellow Warbler, Double-toothed Barbet, and several other birds.
How to access Mabamba Wetland?
Both vehicle and river transportation are available for accessing the marsh. The ancient Entebbe-Kampala Road can be accessed from either Kampala or Entebbe. Once you leave Kisubi and take Nakawuka Road, you will arrive in Kasanje, which is where the wetland is located. Alternatively, those coming from Kampala may opt to use Nakawuka-Kasanje Road by either using a private means of transport or hiring a motorcycle up to Kasanje, where the swamp is located.
Accommodation
Following the Rare and Endangered Birds in Mabamba Wetland, travellers should not worry about the accommodation; since the wetland is closer to Entebbe town, there are several accommodation facilities, which range from budget to mid-range and luxury options, such as Protea Hotel in Entebbe, Best Western and Garden Hotel, Papyrus Guest House, Cycad Guest House Entebbe, 2 Friends Beach Hotel Entebbe, Jet Villas, and Tilapia Lodge Entebbe, among others.
