Murchison Falls Wildlife & Birds

Murchison Falls wildlife ranges from lions, elephants and Rothschild's giraffes on the northern grasslands to hippos and Nile crocodiles in the river, chimpanzees in the Budongo Forest and around 450 bird species, among them the shoebill. Uganda's largest national park is one of its richest for game.

The big game

Murchison Falls has four of the Big Five: elephant, buffalo, lion and leopard. The park holds one of the largest elephant populations in Uganda. Rhinos were lost to poaching in the 1980s and are not found in the park itself; you can track southern white rhinos on foot at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary on the drive from Kampala.

Rothschild's giraffes

The park is one of the most important strongholds of the Rothschild's, or Nubian, giraffe, a subspecies classed as endangered. Herds are easiest to see on the Buligi grasslands north of the river. In July 2026, as oil development inside the park increased, twelve giraffes were moved from the park to Ajai Wildlife Reserve in north-western Uganda.

Antelopes and other grazers

The northern plains are dominated by Uganda kob, with Jackson's hartebeest, oribi, waterbuck, bushbuck and warthogs. Spotted hyenas and side-striped jackals also live here, and lions often hunt the kob herds around the Buligi tracks.

On and beside the Nile

The river below the falls has some of the highest densities of hippos and Nile crocodiles in Africa, best seen on the launch trip. Elephants and buffaloes come down to drink, and the riverbanks hold colonies of bee-eaters.

Primates

Chimpanzees live in the Budongo Forest at the southern edge of the conservation area, where habituated groups can be tracked: see chimpanzee tracking in Budongo. Olive baboons are common near Paraa, black-and-white colobus live in the riverine forest and patas monkeys are seen on the northern savannah.

Birds and the shoebill

Around 450 bird species have been recorded. The headline bird is the shoebill, found in the papyrus of the Nile delta on Lake Albert; read The Shoebill at the Edge of the Delta. Other highlights include the goliath heron, saddle-billed stork, Abyssinian ground hornbill, grey crowned crane and red-throated bee-eater. From about November to April, migrants from Europe and North Africa add to the list.

Where and when to see it

Plan dawn and late-afternoon game drives on the north bank, the launch trip in the afternoon and the delta cruise early in the morning. The dry seasons, December to February and June to September, give the best game viewing; see the best time to visit Murchison Falls.