The Birds of Uganda

Short answerUganda holds over 1,050 species — close to half of all birds recorded in Africa, in a country the size of the United Kingdom. The national bird is the grey crowned crane; the species birders travel for is the shoebill. You will see spectacular birds on an ordinary safari without looking for them.

This is a guide to the birds themselves — what lives here, what to look for and what you are seeing. If you want to plan a trip around them, our birding in Uganda guide covers sites, seasons, guides and itineraries.

How many birds Uganda has

over 1,050 species, per the Uganda Wildlife Authority — nearly half of Africa's total, in a country you can drive across in a long day.

The reason is geography. Three biogeographic zones meet here: lowland Congo-basin rainforest reaching its eastern limit, East African savanna reaching its western limit, and the Albertine Rift montane belt running down the western edge. Most countries have one.

The national bird

The grey crowned crane is on the Ugandan flag and coat of arms, and it is a genuinely beautiful animal — tall, grey-bodied, with a white face patch, red throat wattle and a crown of stiff golden feathers.

You will see them in wetlands, farmland and grassland across much of the country, often in pairs. They are also in trouble: the species is classified as endangered and numbers have fallen sharply through wetland drainage and the illegal trade in birds. Our grey crowned crane facts post covers it properly.

The birds people come for

Albertine Rift endemics

The Albertine Rift — the western arm of the Great Rift Valley — holds a set of birds found nowhere else on earth. Uganda's share of them sits mainly in Bwindi, and particularly the Ruhija sector, which holds 348 recorded species.

• African Green Broadbill — the classic Mubwindi Swamp target
• Rwenzori Turaco — montane forest
• Handsome Francolin
• Regal Sunbird
• Grauer's Warbler
• Rwenzori Batis and Rwenzori Nightjar
• Shelley's Crimsonwing — arguably the hardest of the lot

Our guide to Bwindi's sectors explains why Ruhija specifically is the birders' choice.

The birds you'll see without trying

This is the part that surprises non-birders. Uganda's common birds are spectacular by most countries' standards.

Raptors and big birds

Uganda holds an impressive raptor list, including two of the most powerful eagles in the world — the crowned eagle, which takes prey far heavier than itself, and the martial eagle, Africa's largest.

Add the ostrich in Kidepo, the shoebill in the swamps, and the marabou stork looming over Kampala, and Uganda has an unusual concentration of very large birds. Our post on Africa's strongest birds covers the raptors, and African fish eagle facts covers the one you will hear every day.

Where to see them

For planning — when to go, whether you need a specialist guide, what kit matters and how to build a trip — see birding in Uganda: the complete guide. For the easy Entebbe options, see UWEC and the Botanical Gardens.

Send us your target species and we will route around them rather than around a template.

Uganda's birds: common questions

How many bird species are there in Uganda? Approximately 1,100 species, which is close to half of all birds recorded in Africa — in a country roughly the size of the United Kingdom. That density comes from Uganda sitting where Congo basin rainforest, East African savanna and Albertine Rift montane forest all overlap.

What is Uganda's national bird? The grey crowned crane, which appears on the national flag and coat of arms. It is a tall, elegant bird with a spray of stiff golden feathers on its head, found in wetlands and farmland across the country — and it is classified as endangered, with populations falling steeply.

What is the most famous bird in Uganda? The shoebill — a metre-tall grey wader with an enormous clog-shaped bill that looks genuinely prehistoric. It is the single species most birders travel to Uganda for, and Mabamba Swamp near Entebbe is the most reliable place to find one.

Is Uganda good for birdwatching? It is one of the best countries on earth for it. Around 1,100 species in a small area, three biogeographic zones overlapping, and the unusual advantage that you can bird a 400-species circuit while also trekking mountain gorillas and chimpanzees.

What is Uganda's only endemic bird? Fox's weaver, found in seasonal wetlands in eastern Uganda and nowhere else. It is genuinely difficult to see and is a target species for birders working on a national list.

What birds will I see on a normal safari in Uganda? Without any effort at all: grey crowned crane, African fish eagle, hadada ibis, marabou stork, woodland kingfisher, weavers in numbers, pied and malachite kingfishers on the water, and great blue turaco in forested areas. Uganda's common birds are unusually spectacular.