Filming birds in Uganda

Are you interested in filming birds in Uganda? For everyone going on any safari, they definitely want to come back with a lot of memories inform of pictures and videos. People on birding safaris in Uganda are not any different. There are definitely people out there who are looking to do birding safaris in Uganda and would want to do filming and are looking for procedures on how this can be done. Filming is a tricky activity since most countries have strict laws about filming. Here is all you need to know about filming birds in Uganda:

You will need a permit to film in any of the wildlife protected areas that are controlled by the government. These include the national parks and wildlife reserves. You will need to first submit a written application with a specific activity, in this case filming birds. This bird filming permits should be applied for within a month before the actual date of filming.

After your application has been received, Uganda wildlife authority will agree a fee with you and send you a contract that you will sign and send back by post. The contract can be witnessed by the producer or lawyer of the applicant.

You will then deposit a refundable fee of USD 1000 that will be release upon completion of filming and submit two DVD copies of the work you filmed. The copies you submit to Uganda wildlife authority

will use these copies for only educational purposes and not anything commercial. If the works are intended for news, the Uganda wildlife Authority Media Relations officer will have to give you clearance to publish this work.

Filming on private wildlife areas or birding sites will require permission from the administration. Any filming that involves flying drones or any equipment in the air will require clearance for the Uganda Defense force.

Where to go Filming birds in Uganda

Mabamba Wetland swamp      

This swamp is a ramsar site and has also been listed as an Important Bird Area. The site boosts of over 300 bird species many of which are threatened. It is also home to 7 of the Lake victoria’s Biome endemics the most notable being the papyrus Gonolek and other water species. The site is also flocked by Paleartic migrants that are here from October through to March.

You will be filming birds in Mabamba swamp Uganda like Malachite Kingfisher, Marsh Harrier, Papyrus Gonolek, Northern Brown-throated Weather, Common Sqacco Heron, Great White Pelican, Green Cuckoo, Grey Heron, Orange Weaver,  Pied Kingfisher,  Cattle Egret, Common Moorhen, Common Sandpiper,  Double Toothed Barbet, Glossy Ibis, Goliath Heron, Great Cormorant,  Grey-crowned Crane, Gull-billed Tern, Hadada Ibis, Harmerkop, Little Egret, Little Stilt, Long-tailed Cormorant, Great White Egret,  Long-toed Lapwing among others.

Kibale Forest National Park

Kibaale National park is another park located in South Western Uganda and it covers about 766 sq Km. The Green breasted Pitta is among the 10 most sought after birds in Uganda. The Black-faced Rufous Warbler, Black-headed Weaver, Black-necked Weaver, Zebra Waxbill, Black-billed Turaco, African Citril (Western Citril), Black-throated Apalis, Blue-shouldered Robin-chat, Blue-throated Brown Sunbird, Blue-throated Roller, African Blue Flycatcher, Bocage’ Bush-shrike, , Black Cuckoo-shrike, Brown-headed Tchagra, African-pied Wagtail, Black-and-white Casqued Hornbill, Black-and-white Mannikin, Black-and-white Shrike-flycatcher, Black-billed Weaver,  Bronze Sunbird, Brown Illadopsis, Brown-capped Weaver, Brown-chested Alethe, Brown-eared Woodpecker, Cameroon Sombre Greenbul, Bronze Mannikin, African Green-pigeon, African Dusky Flycatcher, Chubb’s Cicticola, Black-capped Waxbill, Africa Shrike-flycatcher, African Black-headed Oriole, African Emerald Cuckoo, Black-crowned Tchagra, African Wood among others

Queen Elizabeth National park
The park boosts of about 550 bird species. The park has a river line bush land, rivers, seasonal and permanent rivers and lakes.

This park has a variety of bird species due to very many different habitants. Some of the bird species to watch out are; squacco heron, water thick knee, yellow backed weavers, the black crake, knob billed duck, African fish eagle, spur winged plovers, African Jacana, long tailed cormorants, pick and white backed pelicans, white faced whistling ducks, yellow billed and spoon billed storks, African Skimmer, swamp fly-catcher,   different types of king fisher’s like the pied and grey headed king fisher’s, and so on. When you do a boat cruise on the Kazinga channel, most of this bird will be common in this area.

Lake Mburo National Park

Lake Mburo National Park hosts about 313 bird species. The park is a hub for several swampy lakes and this makes it a good habitant for a lot of water birds and many other rare birds like the red faced barbet. Expect the film birds like Lilac-breasted Roller, African-grey Hornbill, the Nubian, Buff-spotted, Brown-eared, and the Grey Woodpeckers, Trilling, Stout, ; the Crested, Coqui, and the Red-winged Francolins, Blue-spotted Wood Dove, Greenwood Hoopoe, Brown Parrot, Rufous-chested Swallow ,Barefaced Go-away bird, African-wattled Plover, Harlequin and Blue Quails, Rufous napped and Flappet larks, Yellow-throated Longclaw, Black-winged Bishop, Chubb’s, Carruther’s and a number of other Cisticolas, Common Button Quail, White-headed and Black-billed Barbet, Common Scimitarbill, Blue-napped

Murchison Falls National park
Murchison falls national park is the largest national park and it is home to about 460 bird species.

The waters here are filled with a lot of wildlife and birds. Some of these animals include; elephant, African Cape buffalo, giraffes, crocodiles, water buck that hang around the river for water.

You will be filming birds in  Murchison falls national park Uganda like the Silver Bird, Blue-napped Mouse birds, Black-headed Gonolek, Grey-crowned Crane, Long-toed Plover, Vitelline Masked Weaver, White-backed Night Heron,Saddle-billed Stork, Spotted and Verreaux’s Owls, Long-tailed and Pennant-winged Nightjars, Spotted Mourning Thrush, standard-winged Nightjar, Bluff-bellied Warblers, Green-winged Ptyilia, Goliath Heron, Black-headed Batis, Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-weaver,  and Pel’s Fishing Owl.

Kidepo Valley National Park
The park has recorded about 480 bird species in recent times. The Park is located in the Northern Easter Uganda and it boarders Kenya and South Sudan. The Park is in between Karamoja and Nageya Valleys.

The Park is home to about 28 Somali Masai Species and Sudan Guinea Biome Endemics and supports some of the rarest species in Uganda, such as Black-breasted Barbet and Karamoja Apalis.

On your filming birds trip in Kidepo Uganda, look out for species like; Silverbird and small bands of Yellow-billed Shrike, Scarlet-chested Sunbird, the Yellow-rumped Seedeater, Clapperton’s Francolin, Black Coucal, African Moustached and the Broad-tailed Warblers, Marsh Tchagra and Crimson-rumped Waxbill, the Ruppell’s and Superb Starlings, Nubian Woodpecker, the Vinaceous Dove, Secretary Bird, Hoopoe, African Swallow-tailed Kite, Mosque Swallow, Little Weaver and Red-cheeked Cordon-bleu, Four-banded Sand Grouse,  White-bellied Tit, Mouse-coloured Penduline Tit, Northern White-crowned and Yellow-billed Shrikes, Pygmy and Beautiful Sunbirds, Rufous Slate-coloured Boubou, Fan-tailed Raven, Superb Starling, Red billed Oxpecker, Eastern Violet backed, and Chestnut Sparrow, Yellow-spotted Petronia, Singing Bush lark,White-headed and White-billed Buffalo Weavers, Brown-backed Woodpecker, Abyssinian and Rufous-crowned Rollers, the Abyssinian Ground, Eastern Yellow and Jackson’s Hornbills, Red-fronted and Black-breasted Barbets among others.

Other places you can for filming birds in Uganda include; Bwindi impenetrable forest national park, Mgahinga gorilla national park, Lake Mburo national park, Mount Rwenzori national park and Mount Elgon national park.