All 4 in 3 days here: ~90%
Murchison Falls National Park
🇺🇬 Uganda
East Africa, Uganda 1474 spp. recorded
Murchison Falls National Park sits in Uganda, protecting a broad tropical savanna split by the Victoria Nile. The river pushes through a narrow rock gap, creating a powerful waterfall that defines the surrounding terrain of rolling grasslands, woodland patches, and sandy riverbanks.
2.231° N 31.872° E
🦜 Nature
692 Species sighted
64,727 Verified sightings From 2019 to 2026
Jul Best month
⭐ Iconic Species
📊 Most Spotted
⭐ Iconic Species
📊 Most Spotted
⭐ Iconic Species
📊 Most Spotted
⭐ Iconic Species
📊 Most Spotted
📊 Most Spotted
📊 Most Spotted
🌙 Most active after dark
+ 552 more species with insufficient data
Challenges you can complete here
All 5 in 3 days here: <5%
Recent sightings in Murchison Falls National Park
LIVEiNaturalistSighting Calendar
How many species you'd see in a day
69Jan
67Feb
75Mar
54Apr
53May
71Jun
78Jul
64Aug
69Sep
54Oct
65Nov
65Dec
Sighting Zones
Warmer areas are where all species together are recorded most often.
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North side (Paraa to Albert Nile swamps)
-
Boat trip Paraa to Murchison Falls
Daily sight. prob.vs avg
Red-throated Bee-eater>90%+40%
African Fish-Eagle~90%+40%
Nile Crocodile~90%+30%
Spur-winged Lapwing~80%+20%
Rüppell's Glossy-starling~70%≈
Gray-headed Kingfisher~60%≈
African Palm-Swift~60%≈
Common Hippopotamus~50%-30%
African Bush Elephant~50%-30%
African Grey Hornbill~40%-30%
Nile Monitor~40%≈
African Buffalo~40%-30%
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Murchison Falls vicinity
🏕️ Experience
Essentials
Entrance
Paid
Tourism
Low
Typical stay
2–3
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
ExcellentHow rich is the wildlife?
4.7
Species by taxon
🦅 Birds 1031
🐒 Mammals 247
🦎 Reptiles 155
🐸 Amphibians 41
1474 Total Species
828 Global average across 316 parks
48 Threatened 6 Endemic
🔭
Sighting
ExcellentHow likely to see animals?
5.0
🎯
Top-12 Avg Probability
73% 📊
Coverage (281 species at ≥5% of 1474 in the inventory)
19% 🔀
Taxon variety in top 12 (9 mammal, 2 bird, 1 reptile)
54% 🔭
Species per 10 outings (distinct species a visitor would meet over 10 outings — effort held equal across parks)
224 🌟
Iconic-group species (≥15%) (every species from the 19 iconic groups — monkeys, cats, toucans, macaws, sloths, crocodilians… — not just the 4 highlighted above)
33 ⭐
High-prob species (>40%)
49 🏕️
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
The first morning just meters from the hotel we saw a group of elephants thinking about crossing the road.
As we continued our game drive, we came across olive baboons along the road, patus monkeys darting into the bushes and buffaloes in groups watching us cautiously.
Freshly mudded African buffalo and a cattle egret A bit further, behind the tall grass, we spotted a couple of African buffaloes that had found a small pool to wallow in and cool off, given the absence of trees and shade.
On our early morning walk, guided by Toni Horat, who is currently working to help prepare the camp and the concession for paying clients, we encountered sign of hippo, leopard, crocodile, and numerous smaller species, with some actual sightings of waterbuck, warthog, baboon and numerous birds.
Before you go
What animals can you see in Murchison Falls National Park?
1,474 species
Murchison Falls National Park has 1,474 recorded vertebrate species. The ones wildlife watchers report most often on a given day are Northern Giraffe (about 80%), Kob (about 80%), African Bush Elephant (about 80%), Hartebeest (about 70%) and Patas Monkey (about 70%). Among birds, the most-seen is Piapiac (about 70%); among reptiles, Nile Crocodile (about 70%).
When is the best time to visit Murchison Falls National Park for wildlife?
March and July–August
In those months the park's 12 most-seen species average about 80% on a given day, against about 50% in April.
Can you see a Nile Crocodile in Murchison Falls National Park?
Yes
About 70% of wildlife watchers report a Nile Crocodile sighting in Murchison Falls National Park on a given day, based on 130 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. The best time is March, August and November (about 80%).
Can you see an African Fish-Eagle in Murchison Falls National Park?
Yes
About 60% of wildlife watchers report an African Fish-Eagle sighting in Murchison Falls National Park on a given day, based on 801 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. The best time is May–July and December–March (about 60%).
Can you see a Northern Giraffe in Murchison Falls National Park?
Yes
About 80% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Giraffe sighting in Murchison Falls National Park on a given day, based on 235 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. The best time is November (about 90%).
Where in Murchison Falls National Park is wildlife easiest to see?
Around North side (Paraa to Albert Nile swamps)
The richest sighting zone is around North side (Paraa to Albert Nile swamps), followed by Boat trip Paraa to Murchison Falls and Pakuba, ranked by how many of the park's headline animals visitors can expect to see in each. See the zones on the map.
Is Murchison Falls National Park good for wildlife watching?
4.9 out of 5
On the Wallace's Line Score, Murchison Falls National Park rates 4.9/5: 5th of 316 parks worldwide and 4th in Africa. 62 of its species are reported by about 40% or more of wildlife watchers on a given day.
