Gifted by Nature and the East African region

News from Uganda - Gifted by Nature and the East African region

BY PROF. DR. WOLFGANG H. THOME , ETN KAMPALA | MAY 2009

NEW CRANE SPECIES FOUND
Uganda apparently has a new crane species, according to reports filed by Achilles Byaruhanga, Executive Director of ‘Nature Uganda’, a key environmental and conservation NGO in Uganda. The so called ‘wattled crane’ was found in the rice fields of Kibimba recently and is a hitherto not seen kind of the crane family, unlike the crested or grey crowned crane and the black necked crane. According to Byaruhanga this brings the number of birds seen and recorded in the country to 1.040, a remarkable number by any standards. The bird is normally resident in the highlands of Ethiopia while other populations are said to exist in Botswana and Zambia and to a lesser extent in other parts of southern Africa. The birds are not normally known to migrate long distances. The ‘hunt’ is now on to find if there are more of the birds found in the area to form a viable breeding community and extra measures of protection have already been called for to ensure that the birds are not captured or in fact poisoned by the regular aerial spraying of the rice fields to keep the other birds in check. It is understood that the owners of Kibimba rice estates have been approached by Nature Uganda to play a part of ensuring the survival of the rare bird but it remains to be seen what, if any, effect and outcome this commendable effort will bring.

In a measure of support the Uganda Wildlife Authority has by the way waived park entrance fees for local ‘birders’ and members of the Ugandan birding and guiding clubs on the occasion of the ‘Uganda Birding Day’ to be held on the 23rd of May. The main launch of the national birding day will take place at the Rain Forest Lodge in Mabira Forest, arguably the flagship property of GeoLodges Africa, formerly called Inns of Uganda. Guest of Honour will there be the Vice President, Prof. Gilbert Bukenya, but lesser profile events are due to take place across the entire country with bird watching and counting that day from 6 a.m until 6 p.m. Any extraordinary finds and reports will appear in this column of course.
Meanwhile, concerns about bird habitats have also arisen in Kenya, where the indiscriminate felling of trees and clearing of forests are increasingly impacting on the water catchment areas, impacting on the flow of rivers and streams and affecting the water levels in the rift valley lakes. Mr. George Kamau, a manager of the Lake Nakuru Lodge, responded to this column’s enquiry about the situation and expressed his concern over the developments. He spoke of tree planting campaigns but also years of anxious wait until such measures show results, while in the meantime the large flamingo migrations may be affected until at least some years of above average rains may supplement the lake waters and restore the bird habitats. This is crucially important for Kenya’s goals to have several of the rift valley lakes designated as ‘world heritage sites’, which will include not just Lake Nakuru, globally renowned for the massive flamingo population, but also lakes Bogoria and Elementaita, the latter incidentally located on the ‘Delamare’ estate, the heir of which was recently in the global news over a criminal case he had to answer and was found guilty of manslaughter. Kenya Wildlife Services and other bodies in Kenya are preparing an application to the UN to consider awarding this prestigious status alongside several other sites presently so designated across the country.

http://www.travelvideo.tv/news/africa/05-25-2009/news-from-uganda-gifted-by-nature-and-the-east-african-region

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