Flamingos in Queen Elizabeth National Park

Looking for see flamingos in Queen Elizabeth National Park? Uganda is proud to be home to over 1060 bird species. There is only one bird that is endemic to Uganda, the Fox’s Weaver. We however have very many special birds some of which are globally threatened and others are rare.

Flamingos are some of the special birds in Uganda and East Africa in general. Uganda has specifically the lesser flamingos and they can be found in lake Munyanyange in Queen Elizabeth national Park. This lake is found around the Katwe sector of the park.

The lake is also a good place for other migratory birds with the largest concentration of the lesser backed gulls and the Larus focus. Other migratory birds include the White Browed Robbin Chats, Flamingos, Desert Cisticolas, and many more. With all this Queen Elizabeth National park is one of the best birding destinations in Uganda with over 560 bird species recorded here.

Scientifically referred to as Phoeniconaias minor, the Lesser Flamingo is a unique bird species explored by birders on safari in Uganda. The Lesser flamingos are known to be the smallest of all the flamingos. They are about 80 to 90 cm in height and 90 to 105cm from beak to tail.  These flamingos weigh about 1.2 to 2.7kg.

The lesser flamingo largely feed on algae that usually grow on the alkaline lake of Munyanyange. The lesser flamingo builds a mud nest that ranges from 30cm in radius to control flooding and provide a good temperature in the nest. Every bird lays a single egg which is incubated by both the male and female parents. They do this in shifts of 24hours for about 28 days. When the chick hatch, they consume the shells and they continue to consume soup made by parents for a few months. The chicks soon join the crèches that can even number to thousands.

The flamingos are palearctic migrants and they usually arrive at Lake Munyanyange in October and leave around April the following year. They are usually in thousands while they rest in this place. During the time these flamingos are here, the area becomes abit muddy and it makes it hard for wild animals to reach the area making it safe for the birds to protect themselves from the predators. During this time, the birds move to the middle of the lake.

Other area here you see the lesser flamingos is, Kasenyi, Nshenyi, Nyamunuka and Bagusa all in Queen Elizabeth National Park.