Bird Watching at Mabamba Swamp Wetlands.
Welcome to Mabamba Swamp Wetlands, the home, a place to see the rare shoebill stork. A trip to Mabamba Bay, is much more than just bird watching in search for the rare shoebill, but will reward you with greater birding experience and country side tour on a local canoe, as you ride in the beautiful swamp in search for the shoebills. Bird Watching at Mabamba Swamp Wetlands is a great way to encounter numerous bird species in Uganda.
Located in west of Entebbe, Mabamba is an extensive marsh stretching through a long narrow bay, fringed with papyrus towards the western main body of Lake Victoria in Mpigi District, closest place to Kampala. There has always been great chances of spotting two or three shoebills, with other numerous birds.
Your guide, picks you from your hotel in Entebbe or Kampala, and you drive off to the Mabamba swamp, which is rough and hour and half drive to the starting point. You can as well take a boat from Entebbe at the shores of Lake Victoria and ride off, to Mabamba. Apart from Mabamba Swamp, Rwanda Eco Company and Safaris can arrange for you other birding expeditions.
There is always a local bride who join you on the boat for the excursion and helps in the search as they keep the tracking of the shoebill due to nesting and previous day spot.
Mabamba Swamp Bay is one of the most convenient places in Uganda to spot the highly sought-after shoebill in its natural habitat. On a lucky day, you will find them either breeding or hunting, and you will have an ample time around them, before you head back and dropped at your hotel.
Bird Watching at Mabamba Swamp Wetlands is a one day activity which can last from 1 – 5 hours. You can decided to do an early morning session starting at 7 am or afternoon session which start at 2 Pm. Both sessions are successful depending on the season. The bird is easiest seen in the morning when they stalk their main prey, the mudfish or frogs, but may be spotted all day. They may stand absolutely still for long periods awaiting the movements of their prey and then suddenly strike with a marvelous speed. At this point, you will be able to take a number of shots with your cameras, capture the beautiful hunting moment.
Bird Watching at Mabamba Swamp Wetlands
Which birds can be sighted there?
Mabamba is a birding paradise, with over 260 species sighted in the region, other notable birds include the papyrus yellow warbler, pallid harrier and blue swallow.
Recent visits also confirmed presence of flocks of other species especially migrants such as Gull-billed Terns, White-winged Black Terns and Whiskered Terns, and residents such as Grey-headed Gulls. Other interesting species found in the marsh include good numbers of Goliath Herons, Spur-winged and Pygmy Geese, Malachite kingfisher, Papyrus Canary, Northern Brown-throated weaver, Carruther’s Cisticola and a number of other birds, to mention but a few. Five Lake Biome species have also been recorded here.
In a nutshell, overwhelming birding experience in Mabamba bay is so soothing with great experience off a canoe ride and not only at the Swamp, but along the way, there are other birding spots with a variety of habitats.
Other activities you can do around Entebbe on your Uganda Safari, includes, fishing on Lake Victoria, bird watching at Entebbe Botanical garden, boat cruise on Lake Victoria, visiting the Ngamba Island Sanctuary and Entebbe city tour including visiting the Zoo (Uganda Wildlife Center)
For more inquiry about Bird Watching at Mabamba Swamp Wetlands, contact our reservation team at info@rwandaecocompany.com or visit our website at www.rwandaecocompany.com.
