The African Birding Expo was held in Uganda on November 18th – 20th 2016 at Botanical gardens in Entebbe. The event was attended by a whole spectrum of the bird-watching community within and outside Africa. There were stands selling products related to bird-watching and nature conservation. They included scopes, binoculars, guide books, tours, foods, clothes, and any other related equipment. Tour operators, hoteliers, conservation organizations, travel agents, airlines were all present. The African Birding Expo happens once every year in Africa.
Activities at the African Birding Expo
Post and pre-expo tours
Lectures
Talk shows
Exhibition
Entertainments
Other Places to visit after the African Birding Expo
Uganda Wildlife Education Center
The Uganda Wildlife Education Center is a fun and exciting place to see and learn about the animals of Uganda and the ecosystems in which they live. Originally founded in the 1950s to accommodate confiscated and injured wildlife and to look after orphan animals which have been taken away from smugglers it has grown considerably in recent years. Many say it’s destined to become the most important showcase for wildlife on the African continent.
Created by the government of Uganda with the help of the Wildlife Conservation Society in New York and managed by a Wildlife Trust, it never fails to delight. At UWEC you will come across free ranging Vervet monkeys and a family troop of DeBraza monkeys in the jungle of our hillside forest. Over 120 bird species can be watched ranging from the famous African fish eagle, over the Great Blue Turaco to Hammerkops, Giant Kingfisher and even the smallest sun birds. UWEC is not a zoo in a conventional sense and neither is it a Safari Park but it is a center where wildlife education is combined with leisure. Our main aim is to model the main ecosystem of this country in open range exhibits. Not only can you observe many of our most exciting indigenous species here, but comprehensive interactive interpretation and briefings on them are also given.
Ssese Islands of Lake Victoria
The 84-forested islands of the Ssese Group, float like green jewels on the waters of Lake Victoria, located 55km from Entebbe, these are one of Uganda’s greatest natural gifts waiting for you to be discovered. To all professional Entomologists Ssese islands provides an earthly insect paradise. Guests are required to bring with them bird watching and fishing gears.
The most famous and recommended tours and historical places of interest in Ssese include;
Nsirwe Island, famous for both bird and spider breeding.
Bugaba Island, the birth and home place of the African Grey parrots. It also hosts a living sample of a true African virgin Equatorial forest.
Bwindi Impenetrable Forest
Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park is one of UNESCO’s heritage sites best known for its Mountain Gorilla populations and gorilla tracking although, it also offers some of the finest montane forest birding in Africa and is a key destination for any birder doing a Safari to Uganda. Amongst the numerous possibilities are no fewer than 23 of Uganda’s 24 Albertine Rift endemics, including spectacular, globally threatened species such as Shelley’s Crimson wing and the African Green Broadbill. Bwindi is one of the few national parks in Africa to have flourished throughout the last Ice Age and it is home to roughly half of the world’s mountain gorillas. Though it is best known for its outstanding gorilla tracking, it also provides refuge to elephant, chimpanzee, monkeys and various small antelope and bird species. The variant biodiversity is supported by the fact that Bwindi is extremely old and also its slopes extend over a broad altitudinal range of 1447m above sea level, enabling habitats ranging from lowland forest to Afromontane vegetation.
Queen Elizabeth National Park
Queen Elizabeth National Park is Uganda’s most popular National Park and certainly one of its most scenic. It stretches from the crater-dotted foothills of the Rwenzori ranges in the north, along the shores of Lake Edward to the remote Ishasha River in the South, incorporating a wide variety of habitats that range from wetlands to savannah to lowland forest. The lush savannah of Queen Elizabeth National Park offers prime grazing to buffaloes, elephants, various antelopes and a variety of over 600 bird species.
