The Wildlife of Uganda

Short answerUganda's wildlife is defined by primates — around 20 species including mountain gorillas and chimpanzees — rather than by herds. It has four of the Big Five free ranging and no wild rhino, plus over 1,050 species of bird. Fewer animals than the Serengeti; far more kinds of animal.

Uganda is not a herds-on-the-plains country and travellers who arrive expecting one are measuring it against the wrong yardstick. What it has instead is variety — three biogeographic zones overlapping in a small area, and the great apes.

Why Uganda's wildlife is different

Lowland Congo-basin rainforest reaches its eastern limit here. East African savanna reaches its western limit. And the Albertine Rift montane belt runs down the western edge. Very few countries contain the boundary of even one of those; Uganda contains all three.

The practical consequence is that a two-week Uganda trip can include gorillas in montane forest, chimpanzees in rainforest, lions on open savanna and Congo-basin birds — journeys of a few hours apart.

The primates

The reason to come. Uganda holds around 20 species, and it is the only country where you can trek mountain gorillas, chimpanzees and golden monkeys on one trip.

Our complete guide to Uganda's primates covers all of them, including the nocturnal species most visitors never see.

The Big Five, and the rhino asterisk

The tree-climbing lions of the Ishasha sector are Uganda's distinctive big-cat draw — behaviour recorded in only a couple of places in Africa. See the tree-climbing lions of Ishasha and lion facts.

Plains game and antelope

Uganda's plains game is thinner than the Serengeti's but more varied than people expect, and several species are confined to one or two parks.

• Uganda kob — the national antelope, on the coat of arms. Kasenyi and Murchison.
• Rothschild's giraffe — Murchison and Kidepo only.
• Plains zebra — roughly 3,100 nationally, mainly Lake Mburo and Kidepo.
• Impala — Lake Mburo and nowhere else in Uganda.
• Jackson's hartebeest, topi, eland, waterbuck, oribi — widespread across the savanna parks.
• Sitatunga — swamp antelope, Mabamba and papyrus fringes.

Our antelope field guide explains how to tell them apart, which turns a monotonous plain into a legible one.

Water and reptiles

Uganda is exceptionally well watered, and a surprising share of its best viewing happens from a boat.

• Hippo — the Kazinga Channel holds one of the densest concentrations in Africa. See hippopotamus facts.
• Nile crocodile — the Nile below Murchison Falls. See Nile crocodile facts.
• Nile monitor — common along waterways.
• Nile perch and 350 fish species — see sport fishing in Uganda.

Our boat safaris guide covers which cruises are worth taking.

Birds

over 1,050 species — close to half of all birds recorded in Africa. The shoebill is the species birders travel for; the grey crowned crane is the national bird.

See the birds of Uganda for the species, and birding in Uganda for planning a trip around them.

The ones almost nobody sees

Uganda holds several species that are present, documented and effectively never encountered by visitors — worth knowing about precisely so you do not plan around them:

• Pangolin — see pangolin facts.
• African golden cat — Kibale runs a formal tracking experience; see golden cat tracking.
• African wild dog — occasional records in the far north-east. See wild dog facts.
• Forest elephant — Semuliki, rarely seen.
• Potto and bushbabies — nocturnal, found on night walks.

Where to see what

For how this compares with the neighbours, see Uganda vs Kenya vs Tanzania, and for pan-African context our guide to African safari animals.

Tell us which animals matter most and we will build the route around them rather than around a standard circuit.

Uganda's wildlife: common questions

What wildlife can you see in Uganda? Mountain gorillas and chimpanzees are the headline, alongside around 20 primate species in total. Uganda also has four of the Big Five free-ranging — lion, leopard, elephant and buffalo — plus giraffe, zebra, hippo, crocodile, a long antelope list, and approximately 1,100 bird species.

Does Uganda have the Big Five? Four of them in the wild. Uganda has lion, leopard, elephant and buffalo in its national parks, but no wild rhino — they were poached to national extinction by the 1980s. Rhino can be seen on foot at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary, which is a protected breeding reserve rather than a national park.

What is Uganda most famous for wildlife-wise? Mountain gorillas. Around half the world's remaining population lives in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, and gorilla trekking is the single reason most visitors come. After that, chimpanzees in Kibale, the tree-climbing lions of Ishasha, and the shoebill.

Are there giraffes and zebras in Uganda? Yes. Rothschild's giraffe are found in Murchison Falls and Kidepo, and Uganda holds roughly 3,100 plains zebra, mainly in Lake Mburo and Kidepo. Both species are absent from most of the country, so the parks you choose determine whether you see them.

What animals are unique to Uganda? Nothing is strictly endemic among the large mammals, but several things are hard to see elsewhere: the tree-climbing lions of Ishasha, the Uganda kob, Rothschild's giraffe, golden monkeys in the Virungas, and the highest primate density in Africa at Kibale.

Is Uganda better than Kenya or Tanzania for wildlife? Different rather than better. Kenya and Tanzania deliver far larger herds and the Great Migration. Uganda delivers primates — gorillas, chimpanzees and around 20 species in total — plus excellent birding and much lower vehicle density. Many travellers do both.