Lake Mburo: A Paradise for bird and animal lovers

For Lovers of wildlife, a trip to Lake Mburo National Park is worth taking. It is home to 350 bird species and 68mammal species.  The park forms part of a 50KM – Long wetland system linked by a swamp. There are 13 lakes in the area and five of the lie within the park’s borders.  Once covered by open savanna, the park now contains much woodland as there are no elephants to tame the vegetation. In the western part, the savanna is interspersed with rocky ridges and forested gorges, with patches of papyrus swamp ringing the lakes.

For satisfying tour, first on the schedule is a journey to Rwonyo rest camp, which is a center for tourism activities in the park. There is a craft shop close by where visitors can buy souvenirs from their trip. As you travel through several tracks on the eastern side towards the camp, you can see a variety of animals and birds. Over the hilltop, a panoramic view of the p[ark and its five lakes awaits. Animals to see include Impalas, elands and Buchell’s, zebras. There are also warthogs, buffaloes, oribis, defassa, waterbucks and reedbucks.  “Leopards and hyenas are also present, but this is not the time to see them,” Christine Lyn Nakayenze a tourism warden, explains, adding that even lions that had gone extinct in the park, have recently been sighted.

The network of game tracks in the east of the park passes a variety of landscape features including acacia woodland, wetlands, grassy hillsides, rocky outcrops and seasonally flooded valley floors. In the swampy valleys near the salt licks are a variety of bird species, including the rufous-billed heron, grey crowned crane, black bellied bustard and brown chested lapwing, omong others.

Nakayenze says about 350 bird species have been recorded. “These include the red-faced barbet, the endemic African finfoot and the rere shoebill. The papyrus yellow warbler, saddle-billed stock, brown chested lapwing, African wattled lapwing, abyssian ground hornbill and white-winged warbler,” she exprains. She adds that the acacia woodland bird species are especially well represented, while forest species may be may be found in Rubanga Forest and they include the blue-breastedkingfisher, hairy-breasted barbet and yellow-rumped tinkerbird.

Lake Mburo has a number of trackdrives that cluster wildlife. This way, tourists know where to go if they want to see particular animals. The inpala drive, has impalas, waterbucks, warthogs, topis and zebras. The zebra tracks have burchell’s zebras (Equus burchelli) as well as bushbucks, oribi and reedbucks. On the Kazuma track, you can see birds like the black-bellied bustard also known as the Black-bellied Korhaan, that often patrol the ares. Tha Kigambira Loop is next and it takes you through a wooded wilderness where you can see bushbucks and and duikers.

BOAT TRIPS

Lake Mburo, the largest of the lakes inside the park offers boart trips. It is also the natural haven for fauna and flora. The water bank swarms with animals and birds that come to drink. Crocodiles and hippopotami are permanent residents.

“The fringing swamps are a hide out for secretive papyrus animal species such as the sitatunga antelope plus red/black and yellow papyrus ganokek,” Nakayenze says. She says the lake also offers sport fishing for interested tourists. The lake has about six species of fish, the common one being Tilapia.

By Bruce Amp