Mabamba Swamp Shoebill Tour

A beautiful sunny day start and all morning and evening pleasant weather for a dry season on a Mabamba Shoebill Tour. Comfortable for birding, we could not wish for more. We hit the short drive to one of the world’s top sites to find the Shoebill; a giant bird that birdwatchers describe as prehistoric. The Mabamba wetlands are only a small portion of the extensive marshes surrounding Africa’s largest freshwater body; Lake Victoria. These shallow muddy marshes have attracted an endless list of aquatic wildlife, including the West African Lungfish (Protopterus annectens), a primitive, old-world, aestivating fish species. During aestivation (suspended animation), they can do without food and water for three to five years and make no urine or waste. They wake up when water becomes available. This fish is the Shoebill’s primary diet, and there is minimal competition here. On blessed days like this one, they show up quickly. That was the case for today’s Mabamba Shoebill Tour, three Shoebill individuals within one hour. Of course, there was a fancy selection of classic African waterfowl, including Yellow-billed Duck, Western Little and the Great Egret, Squacco and Purple Heron, and African Jacana in hundreds and half a dozen African Marsh Harriers hunting overhead. We also have a few migratory shower birds that included Common Greenshank, Wood and Common Sandpipers, Common Ringed Plover, Little Stint and a Gul-billed Tern.

In the afternoon after our Mabamba Shoebill Tour and after the lunch break, we paid a second visit to the Entebbe Botanical Gardens. They had treated us so well the previous day and did for today. We saw Crowned Hornbills, African and Eurasian Hobbys, Western Yellow Wagtail, Woodland Kingfisher, Green Pigeon, Hooded Volture, Harrierhawk, and Willow Warbler, Olive Sunbird, White-browed Robin-chat and an adorable male Klass’s Cuckoo and Red-fronted Tinkerbird that responded too well to the whistles. Generally a perfect day

Birding on water – looking for the Shoebill and wetland specials.

Birding on Mabamba wetland is done from a motorized wooden canoe/boat. Plenty of boats are available with local riders eagerly waiting to take you to see the Shoebill. The Shoebill will be the first bird to look for as soon as you get into the boat. The fishermen who go out early in the morning to find what they caught in their nets sometimes help in providing information where they saw the Shoebill. Otherwise it will be a game of searching in the known grasses where the Shoebill loves to hunt.

Morning time is the best time to see the Shoebill when it is stalking lungfish by standing still for long even hours without movement until an unlucky fish crosses its path. Later in the day when it gets hot the Shoebill rests which it does by spreading out its wings & squatting among the grass and thus may be hard to find. It may also be seen flying high in the sky to cool.

After observing the Shoebill continue with normal birding, exploring the several water channels towards the Lake Victoria and away deep into the wetland wading through thick papyrus and grasses.

Some of water birds not easily missed include: Purple Swamphen, African Marsh Harrier, African Darter, Common Squacco Heron, Purple Heron, Long-tailed Cormorant, Northern Brown-throated Weaver, Yellow-billed Duck, Malachite Kingfisher

Birding cultivations and bushland along the edge of the Mabamba wetland

The nice trail (a footpath) going along the wetland can cap up your birding trip at Mabamba and improve your checklist with field species.

After coming back from the boat trip on Mabamba swamp you can then take on this footpath which starts on your left just before the exit. The path goes along the wetland and passes through cultivations and bushland and past a eucalyptus tree plantation that is not so rich but can provide some surprising woodland species. You can take a couple of hours walking till when you feel you have had enough because the trail is quite long.

Some of the common birds include Rufous-napped Lark, Sooty Chat, Grassland Pipit, Red-bellied Paradise-Flycatcher, Lizard Buzzard, cuckoos, weavers, scrub-robins, sunbirds, etc…

Birding in Nkima Forest

Nkima Forest is a small patch of forest located on a hill overlooking Mabamba wetlands. It is about 2km from Mabamba landing site and is just a 20 minutes’ walk from Mabamba. Nkima forest may not compare with the big forests like Mabira forest, but it will give you a worthwhile forest birding experience as an extra to your water and field birding experience at Mabamba wetlands. If you think of a day of birding Mabamba wetlands and its environs, then Nkima forest is the included forest habitat to improve the diversity of bird list with forest species. Nkima forest will surprise with some forest specials that you may not easily see in the big forests. It is a young forest going by the thick undergrowth.

Birding in Nkima Forest starts at Nkima Forest Lodge at the top of the hill where different trails radiate into the forest interior. The clearing around the lodge is a nice spot to start, you see several species on fruiting and flowering trees and shrubs at the edge of the forest. Green Sunbird, Grey-headed Nigrofinch and Weyn’s Weaver are hard to miss here. Looking farther up in the tall tree canopies you will see more birds including cuckoos, hornbills, bee-eaters, wattle-eyes etc… After walking the grassy clearing at the top of the hill you can go into the forest interior to look for specials. The shy but vocal White-tailed Flufftail is top on the list and Nkima forest probably gives you guaranteed sightings (which appears about playing its call). Other species you stand a high chance of spotting in the interior include Western Nicator, Red-capped Robinchat, Tambourine Dove, Scally Francolin, etc…

Other than birds Nkima forest is filled with several other wildlife include monkeys, squirrels, bushbabies, etc…

Where to stay in Mabamba

Nkima Forest Lodge

Nkima Forest Lodge at the moment is the only decent place to stay in/near Mabamba. It is a nice midrange (3 star) lodge located in the heart of the Nkima forest overlooking Mabamba wetland and Lake Victoria in the distance.

The main house that houses the lounge, restaurant, library is on top of the hill and is a nice place to chill and observe the forest.

The lodge has 8 cottages well situated down the hill in different spots of the forest interior. The cottages are spacious and beautifully furnished and are self-contained with washrooms inside. They have a deck where you can sit and enjoy views into the forest and from the comfort of your lodge you observe monkeys swinging by, squirrels, birds and other forest inhabitants.