Bwindi Forest National Park

Bwindi Forest National Park is regarded as one of the most  biologically diverse rain forests in Africa, largely owing to its antiquity and altitude range, which is between 1160m and 2607m above sea level. It is a true rain forest, spread over a series of steep ridges and valleys that form the eastern edge of the Albertine Rift Valley.

The park has an average annual rainfall of  almost 1500mm, a vital catchment area and the source of five major  rivers which flow  into Lake Albert. Until  about 500 years ago when  agriculturists started  planting crops in the Kisoro area, this park was part of a much larger belt of forest stretching south to the slopes of Virunga mountains in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

Tourism in Bwindi focuses on gorilla trekking tours at the four locations, Buhoma in the northwest of the park, Ruhija in the east, Nkuringo in the southwest, and Rushaga in the south. Slightly more than half the world’s mountain gorilla population is found in Bwindi, an estimated  320 individuals living in 15 troops.

Given the focus on gorillas, it may come as a surprise to learn that Bwindi harbors at least 120 mammal species, more than any national park in Uganda except Queen Elizabeth and Murchison Falls National Parks.
This list mainly consists of small mammals like bats and it also includes 11 types of primate, including a substantial chimpanzee population and high numbers of red-tailed and blue monkey as well as black and white colobus and olive baboon primates.

Of the big five, only elephants are present, with a herd of around 30 individuals in the southeast of the park. Buffaloes  and leopards were present until recent times but they are thought to have been hunted to extinction. Six antelope species occur in the park, including bush buck and five subspecies of forest duiker.

About 350 bird species have been recorded in Bwindi, a remarkably high figure when you consider that, unlike most other national park checklists, it includes very few  water birds.

Of particular interest to birders are 23 species endemic to the Albertine rift, and at least 14 species recorded nowhere else in Uganda, among them the African green broad-bill, white-tailed blue flycatcher, brown–necked parrot, white-bellied robin chat, and Fraser’s eagle owl.

Bwindi is also home to at least 200 butterfly species, including eight Albertine Rift endemics. Dedicated butterfly watchers might identify more than 50 varieties in one day!

The name Bwindi derives from  the local phrase, ‘Mubwindi  bwa Nyinamukari,’ which likely originally referred to the Mubwindi Swamp in the southeast section of the park rather than the forest itself. The story behind the name goes back to about a century ago, when it is said that a family migrating north from the Kisoro area found themselves standing at the southern end of a seemingly impenetrable swamp.

The parents asked the swamp spirits for guidance, and were told that only if they sacrificed their most beautiful  daughter, Nyinamukari, would the rest of the family be able to cross without mishap.

After two days of deliberation the family decided that they could not turn back south, and so they threw the girl into the water and went on their way safely to the other side. When news of the sacrifice spread, people began to avoid the swamp, calling it Mubwindi bwa Nyinamukari.

Inside Bwindi

The main tourist attraction in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is gorilla trekking, mainly done in four sectors: Buhoma, Ruhija, Rushaga, and Nkuringo. A gorilla permit costs $700 U.S. per visitor all year round.