All 5 in 3 days here: >90%
Akagera National Park
🇷🇼 Rwanda
East Africa, Rwanda 1048 spp. recorded
Akagera National Park sits in eastern Rwanda, where the tropical savanna meets a chain of lakes and gentle hills. Open grasslands, scattered acacia, and the shimmering shoreline of Lake Ihema give the park a blend of dry plains and wetland edge that sets it apart from Rwanda’s mountain reserves.
-1.670° S 30.736° E
🦜 Nature
483 Species sighted
36,096 Verified sightings From 2019 to 2026
Jul Best month
⭐ Iconic Species
📊 Most Spotted
⭐ Iconic Species
📊 Most Spotted
⭐ Iconic Species
📊 Most Spotted
📊 Most Spotted
📊 Most Spotted
🌙 Most active after dark
+ 656 more species with insufficient data
Challenges you can complete here
All 4 in 3 days here: ~90%
All 5 in 3 days here: ~70%
All 5 in 3 days here: ~10%
Recent sightings in Akagera National Park
LIVEiNaturalistSounds of Akagera National Park
Afternoon soundscape4:56
Rwanda · 2025
© Alain Malengreau · XC1010642 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Sighting Calendar
How many species you'd see in a day
68Jan
59Feb
72Mar
75Apr
63May
60Jun
76Jul
58Aug
61Sep
65Oct
55Nov
71Dec
Sighting Zones
Warmer areas are where all species together are recorded most often.
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Visitor centre
-
Kilaia Plain
Daily sight. prob.vs avg
Topi~90%+20%
Impala~90%+10%
Red-necked Francolin~70%≈
Common Warthog~60%-10%
African Wattled Lapwing~60%≈
Rüppell's Glossy-starling~60%-20%
Cape Turtle Dove~50%-10%
Fork-tailed Drongo~50%-10%
African Fish-Eagle~50%-20%
Red-cheeked Cordon-bleu~50%-10%
Common Hippopotamus~50%-30%
Speke's Hinge-back Tortoise~50%+20%
-
Lac Ihema
🏕️ Experience
Essentials
Entrance
Paid
Tourism
Low
Typical stay
1–2
daysTrails
Easy
World Heritage
No
Climate
Temp °C Rain mm
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
0.0 World-class
Wallace's Line Score
How good is this park for seeing wildlife? 🦜
Biodiversity
GoodHow rich is the wildlife?
4.0
Species by taxon
🦅 Birds 704
🐒 Mammals 198
🦎 Reptiles 115
🐸 Amphibians 31
1048 Total Species
828 Global average across 316 parks
32 Threatened 4 Endemic
🔭
Sighting
ExcellentHow likely to see animals?
5.0
🎯
Top-12 Avg Probability
77% 📊
Coverage (266 species at ≥5% of 1048 in the inventory)
25% 🔀
Taxon variety in top 12 (10 mammal, 2 bird)
37% 🔭
Species per 10 outings (distinct species a visitor would meet over 10 outings — effort held equal across parks)
209 🌟
Iconic-group species (≥15%) (every species from the 19 iconic groups — monkeys, cats, toucans, macaws, sloths, crocodilians… — not just the 4 highlighted above)
36 ⭐
High-prob species (>40%)
61 🏕️
Experience
ExcellentHow easy and pleasant is the visit?
4.8
Climate Pleasant High
Entrance Paid Low
Tourism Low High
Trails Easy High
World Heritage No —
What visitors say
As we flipped around, we spotted two more African classics: A few Zebras through the shrubbery (none of my photos came out well) and a Giraffe, a decent way off the road.
And yes, we saw a lot: buffaloes, giraffes, baboons, zebras, hippos, elephants, loads of birds.
During my two safaris, I have seen elephants, rhinos, and buffalo.
There were still several new species, like the Pearl-spotted Owlet in the header image, and the opportunity for some great shots of birds I had already seen, with a total of 64 species on the morning list.
Before you go
What animals can you see in Akagera National Park?
1,048 species
Akagera National Park has 1,048 recorded vertebrate species. The ones wildlife watchers report most often on a given day are Impala (about 80%), Olive Baboon (about 80%), Plains Zebra (about 80%), Topi (about 80%) and East African Giraffe (about 80%). Among birds, the most-seen is Rüppell's Glossy-starling (about 70%); among reptiles, Nile Crocodile (about 70%); among amphibians, Common Reed Frog (about 30%).
When is the best time to visit Akagera National Park for wildlife?
March–May, July and October
In those months the park's 12 most-seen species average about 80% on a given day, against about 40% in September.
Can you see a Lion in Akagera National Park?
Yes
About 60% of wildlife watchers report a Lion sighting in Akagera National Park on a given day, based on 33 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. The best time is January–February, April and August (about 70%).
Can you see an African Bush Elephant in Akagera National Park?
Yes
About 80% of wildlife watchers report an African Bush Elephant sighting in Akagera National Park on a given day, based on 81 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. The best time is January–February, April–May, July and October (about 80%).
Can you see an East African Giraffe in Akagera National Park?
Yes
About 80% of wildlife watchers report an East African Giraffe sighting in Akagera National Park on a given day, based on 85 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. The best time is January–February, May–August and October (about 80%).
Can you see an African Fish-Eagle in Akagera National Park?
Yes
About 70% of wildlife watchers report an African Fish-Eagle sighting in Akagera National Park on a given day, based on 619 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. The best time is May–August and December (about 80%).
Where in Akagera National Park is wildlife easiest to see?
Around Southern Area
The richest sighting zone is around Southern Area, followed by Visitor centre and Kilaia Plain, ranked by how many of the park's headline animals visitors can expect to see in each. See the zones on the map.
Is Akagera National Park good for wildlife watching?
4.7 out of 5
On the Wallace's Line Score, Akagera National Park rates 4.7/5: 37th of 316 parks worldwide and 26th in Africa. 70 of its species are reported by about 40% or more of wildlife watchers on a given day.
