Bird watching in the Ruhija section of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park will expose you to your dream rare forest bird species. The Bwindi forest ranks among the best birding destinations in Uganda with over 23 highly localized forest Albertine Rift endemics.
Ruhija, being the highest peak of the forest, offers the best views of the rare bird species in Bwindi. These include the white-starred robin, grey cuckoo shrike, strange weaver, banded Prinia, brown-chested Alethe, and slender-billed Greenbul. Others include the yellow-streaked Greenbul, white-browed Crombec, mountain Illadopsis, Luther’s bush shrike, grey bush shrike, and grey-green bush shrike.
All these and many others are among the 345 bird species recorded in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.
While here, you can also visit the Mubwindi swamp, a rewarding steep mountain as you drop from 2,400 m to 2,050 m. Birding in the bamboo zone is also good because you can spot quite a number of bird species.
These include the handsome francolin, archers robin chat, stripe-breasted tit, purple-breasted sunbird, mountain greenbul, dusky Crimsonwing, mountain Illadopsis, and mountain yellow warbler. There are also duikers and warblers.
Birders who come with camping equipment can camp at Ruhija campground.
More About Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Bird watching in Bwindi
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park also protects an estimated 400 mountain gorillas, that’s roughly half of the world’s population. This is because of the several habituated gorilla families such as the Oruzogo gorilla family, which can be tracked.
This biologically diverse region also provides shelter to a further 120 mammals, including several primate species such as baboons and chimpanzees, as well as elephants and antelopes. There are around 350 species of birds hosted in this forest, including 23 Albertine Rift endemics.
Bwindi was managed as a productive forest reserve since 1932. In 1991, the forest gained a national park status with the official name of ‘Bwindi Impenetrable National Park’. It is managed by the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) as part of the Bwindi Mgahinga Conservation Trust/Area (BMCT/A).
BMCA comprises Bwindi Impenetrable and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park – the Ugandan portion of the Virunga Mountains. BMCA is also part of the Greater Virunga Landscape, which includes southwestern Uganda, the eastern Democratic of Congo (DRC), and northwestern Rwanda. In Rwanda, Volcanoes National Park is the primary home to the Mountain Gorillas.