Umusambi Village located on the eastern edges of Kigali City is an excellent birding hotspot offering a rewarding experience and an introduction to the rich Rwanda bird diversity. Covering some 21-hectares, Umusambi Village is the restored wetland established in 2014 by Rwanda Wildlife Conservation Association (RWCA) as a sanctuary and a rehabilitation center for the rescued endangered Grey-crowned Cranes. Today the sanctuary hosts over 40 Grey-crowned Cranes a fraction of tens of hundreds that has been rescued, rehabilitated and released back into the wild.
Birding at Umusambi Village
Undoubtedly the best birding hotspot in Kigali, Umusambi Village offers a rewarding Day-birding trip out of the city and an introduction to birds of Rwanda. This restored wetland is criss-crossed by extensive birding trails that explore a variety of local microhabitats including patches of woodlands, ponds, wetlands and agricultural farm edges where a checklist of over 100 species of birds occur.
Bird Highlights at Umusambi Village
Bird highlights across various habitats include; Grey-crowned Crane, Western Citril, White-collared Oliveback, Variable Sunbird, Grey-capped Warbler, Green-headed Sunbird, Bronze Sunbird, Grey-headed Nigrita, Black-winged Bishop, Tambourine Dove, Baglafecht Weaver, Little Bee-eater, Chubb’s Cisticola and White-chinned Prinia frequent the luxuriant vegetation on wetland edges.
Black and White Mannikin, Bronze Mannikin, Eastern Plantain Eater, Black-crowned and Common Waxbills are some of the regulars in short grasses on the fringes of wetland patches. Didrik Cuckoo, Red-chested Cuckoo, and Village Indigobird are some of common seasonal regulars. The wetland patches host Grosbeak Weaver, Red-chested Sunbird, Black-headed Weaver, Fan-tailed Weaver with Malachite and Pied Kingfishers attending to the small pond.
Others great birds include; Black-headed Gonolek, African Pygmy Kingfisher, Arrow-marked Babbler, Common Fiscal, Mackinnons Fiscal, Woodland Kingfisher, African Thrush, Tropical Boubou, Snow-crowned Robin-Chat, Spot-flanked Barbet, Great-blue and Ross’s Turaco, Nubian Woodpecker, Winding Cisticola, Speckled Mousebird, Red-chested Sunbird, and more.
Raptors include; Augur Buzzard, Palm-nut Vulture, Long-crested Eagle, Yellow-billed Kite, African Harrier-Hawk, Lizard Buzzard and occasional visits from African Hobby.
Getting to Umusambi Village
Umusambi Village is easily accessed by taxi or bus lying along the KK3 highway past Kigali International Airport and Inyange Factory. This superb location makes it easy to explore on Day-birding trip from Kigali or a stop off to or from Akagera NP while on Rwanda birding tour.