The Shoe Bill Stork In East Africa : The shoebill stork is among the prehistoric birds that can be seen in a handful of locations in East Africa which is one of the main reasons why it is among the most sought after attractions you can watch for travellers interested in the birding safaris that will help you track a number of rewarding bird species that can be seen during your birding safaris In Africa.
For travellers interested in watching the shoe bill stork in Uganda, you can watch the species by visiting Ziwa rhino sanctuary where you will access the species around lugogo swamp. You can also watch the species along the kampala masaka highway at the lwera swamp and the mabamba swamp in Entebbe and semuliki national park on the shores of Lake Albert and the ishasha sector in the southern part of Queen Elizabeth National Park and the Uganda wildlife education center also known as the Entebbe zoo that will give you an up-close look at the shoe bill stork.
The endangered shoe bill stork in Rwanda can be seen in Akagera national park when you participate in the boat cruise on Lake Ihema which will give you the opportunity to track the species as you enjoy the boat rides and the cool breeze for a memorable safari experience.
The best time to track the shoe bill stork
The best time to watch the shoe bill stork is from late May to September this when the rains are short and food is readily available hence making their movements quite few for the species. However, you can also watch the species in the dry season especially in Rwanda while participating in the boat cruise on Lake Ihema.
FACTS ABOUT THE SHOE BILL STORK
The bill looks like a shoe
The reason why the shoe bill stork is called so is because the bill/ beak of the bird looks exactly like a shoe which is among the main reasons why it is quite a popular bird species among birders interested in watching the bird species in the wild especially endangered species. The bill of a shoe bill stork is quite strong that it can tear apart a 6 foot lung fish and if you are lucky enough you can watch the bird species hunting their prey.
The dominant bird and the strongest will chase away the siblings
When a mother gives birth to its young ones, the strongest of the shoe bill stork babies can chase away the weaklings from the nest this is done so that it gets all the attention of its mother which also means more food for them. Once you visit the shoebill stork in Uganda at the Uganda wildlife Education Centre, you will get to realize how intelligent the species are once they are used to human presence for instance sushi the shoebill at the zoo will bow down when he sees visitors which is quite fascinating to watch.
They can stand for hours motionless
The shoe bill stork is a great hunter in ways that they can stand motionless without any movements for hours waiting on their prey and once it gets it can easily decapitate it in the fastest way possible. One of the surprising prey that have been caught by the shoe bill stork are the young crocodiles which makes them quite fascinating species to watch
While participating in your birding safaris in East Africa to watch the shoe bill stork, you should also consider visiting national parks which will give you access to a number of endangered bird species like the Albertine endemic bird species that can be seen when you participate in birding in Africa. among the different bird species that can be seen include the Albertine endemic species like; the blue turaco, Ross’s turaco, coqui Francolin, long tailed cisticola, bubbling cisticola, Miombo wren warbler, Chubb’s cisticola among other the bird species
