Kibale Forest National park

Dominated by evergreen plants, Kibale Forest National Park is 795km² and connects to Queen Elizabeth National Park to the south creating a 180km-long corridor for wildlife between Ishasha and Sebitoli in the north of Kibale Forest National Park.

Kibale is one of the last remaining areas of both lowland and montane forests, as well as sustaining the last significant expanse of pre-montane forest in East Africa.

The most significant feature for visiting the park is the wide array of primate species, a total of 13 which is an unparalleled number anywhere in the world.

Primates dominate the mammalian species in the park, and although you can see a smattering of other beasts like occasional buffalo or elephants, it is creatures like L’Hoest’s monkey, the endangered red colobus monkey or the noctural potto, Demidov’s dwarf galago, and the eastern needle-clawed bushbaby which will entice you to visit this park.

There are around 375 bird species to boot; Little Green Bul, Black-eared Ground Thrush, Dusky Crimsonwing, Purple-breasted Sunbird, African Grey Parrot and Scaly-breasted Illadopsis being amongst those to keep an eye out for.

Animal Species

The main attraction from a wildlife perspective are the primates, particularly chimpanzees. However the density and diversity of primates is the highest here in the whole of Africa!

As such, they are just one of 13 different primate species that also include; I’Hoest’s monkeys, East Africa’s biggest population of the endangered red colobus monkey, the black & white colobus, red tailed monkey, blue monkey, olive baboon, grey cheeked mangabey, bush baby and potto.

As part of the 325 bird species, six of which are endemic to the Albertine rift; dusky crimsonwing, black-capped apalis, blue-headed sunbird, collared apalis,red-faced woodland warbler and purple-breasted sunbird.

You may also see; green breasted pitta, African pitta, Abyssinian groundthrush, yellow spotted nicator, black-eared ground thrush, brownchested alethe, yellow rumped tinker bird, blue-breasted kingfisher and the crowned eagle.

Activities and Culture

Chimpanzee Trekking

Kibale’s most popular activity is the Kanyanchu Primate Walk. There are thirteen species to be seen but the main attraction is most certainly the chimpanzees.

Tracking first began in 1993 with the chance of spottng them being exceptional. The best months for this trail are the dry seasons from June-July and then from December – February. Other times of the year can make the trek more difficult.

When you do encounter the chimps, you can stay for up to an hour to enjoy their company, and these chimps are very accustomed to human presence making them as friendly as you are ever likely to find wild chimpanzees.

The Chimpanzee Habituation Experience (CHEX) enables visitors to accompany researchers and habituators into the forest.

The chimpanzee groups involved are less accustomed to human presence than those visited on the Primate Walk and following and viewing them is both exciting and challenging.

You will need to book in advance to partake in this trip, where you can watch the chimps feeding, copulating, hunting, breastfeeding, resting, patrolling after their evening feed. The local tour guides are government accredited so you can be sure for a professional and engaging spectacle.

Birding

Whilst you can take in the bird species around you freely, you also have Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary which lies just outside of the park and houses 138 bird species with guided tours along the boardwalk.

You can see species like white-spotted flufftail, yellow-spotted barbet, hairy-breasted barbet, yellow-billed barbet, superb sunbird, brown-crowned tchagra, Bocage’s bush-shrike, black bishop, white-breasted negrofinch and black-crowned waxbill among others.

There are also guided bird watching tours within the park at 7am daily from Kanyanchu, and you can see rare species like the Papyrus Gonolek, White-winged Warbler, White-collared Oliveback and Papyrus Canary.

Cultural Experience

Experiences are managed by Kibale Association for Rural Environment Development (KAFRED) which is a community-based organisation which uses ecotourism to promote biodiversity and enhance local lives.

The life of the Batooro can be discovered during a village walk. The tour stops by the village’s primary school, church, and traditional healer.

You can learn about women’s role in the village and the traditional ceremonies where the history of Bigodi is told through the story of the “Village of Two Tribes”. This describes when the indigenous Batooro were joined by migrating Bakiga from southwestern Uganda in the 1950s.

Money raised from these tours goes back into the local communities, and in 2010, KAFRED they won the prestigious UNDP’s Equator Initiative Award for their service.