Queen Elizabeth National Park is one of the most popular and oldest savannah national parks located in the western region of Uganda. It covers a 1,978 km² piece of land with 95 species of mammals and over 600 species of birds. Queen Elizabeth National Park is also situated astride the Equator in the Western Rift Valley of South West Uganda, close to the Southernmost tip of the fabled, mist-covered Mountains of the Moon – the Rwenzori Mountains and is contiguous with Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It is a region of varied habitats including open grassland with thickets, thick bush, forest, swamps, and lake shore. Queen Elizabeth National Park together with Virunga encircles Lake Edward which is connected to Lake George by the Kazinga Channel.
The Park is a world biosphere reserve (UNESCO 1979) includes a RAMSAR wetland site and is classified Important Bird Area (IBA) by Bird Life International. Queen Elizabeth National Park has over 600 of Uganda’s 1027 species of birds (over a quarter of Africa’s bird species) more than any other park in Africa.
More about Queen Elizabeth National Park
There is potential to view lions relaxing and elephants ambling and giant forest hog snuffing. Any visitor to this park cannot fail to be amazed by the enormous diversity in each kingdom of creation. It is simply a visual feast. Take a boat trip, a game drive, a crater walk, or a woodland walk, or simply enjoy any of the myriad stunning views. Queen Elizabeth National Park provides an unforgettable and unique experience.
In the Southern part of the park is the Ishasha sector where tree-climbing lions may be found perched on Savannah fig trees. There is a high concentration of game in this Savannah setting that includes Lake Edward and the Ishasha River flats, and the Ishasha riverine forest. The hippo pools in the Ishasha River and Congo escarpment provide splendid scenery.
Maramagambo Forest is one of the largest forests in Uganda forming part of Queen Elizabeth National Park. It is a medium altitude moist, semi-deciduous forest. Characteristics of such forests are increasingly becoming rare in Africa. It has very spectacular lakes and craters. It is the only place in the park where one could find Blue Lakes. Other features of attraction in the forest include; primates e.g. L’hoest’s monkeys, Chimpanzees, bush babies, baboons, vervet monkeys, red-tailed monkeys, etc. Due to its location, Maramagambo Forest has a high diversity of butterflies. The bat and the hunter’s cave are other pleasant experiences that the forest offers, and of course some forest birds.
The Northern Crater Area comprises a scenic area of explosion craters, some containing salt lakes, formed by volcanic activity some 8-10,000 years ago. Some of these craters are dry. These unique scenic vantage points are important as dry-season watering points for animals.
It was in 1906 when the northern part of Lake George was declared as a game reserve to prevent and protect the unregulated hunting by Africans, and Europeans and also the necessary growing of cotton and wheat in these parts. Then in 1912, the whole parts of Lake George and Ishasha areas were restricted which forced the affected people who were practicing agriculture and fishing to migrate to safer areas. So the area was abandoned for a long time which promoted the increase of wildlife hence the emergence of the Lake George game reserve. Later, the existence of the game reserve was also facilitated by the long spell of sleeping sickness until the 1930,s which forced people to abandon the game reserve areas for a long time. In 1952, the game reserve was upgraded to National Park status hence Kazinga National Park together with Murchison Falls National Park but after two (2) years (1954), the name was changed from Kazinga National Park to Queen Elizabeth National Park to commemorate a visit by Queen Elizabeth II of England.