Akagera Wildlife Safaris
Akagera National Park, located in the East, has exceptional levels of biodiversity and forms the largest protected wetland in central Africa.
Akagera National Park is located in the northeast of Rwanda along the border with Tanzania. Although founded in 1934, much of the park was reallocated as farms and in 1997 the park was reduced in size from more than 2,500 sq km (nearly 10% of the surface area of Rwanda) to its current extent of 1,122 sq km. Since 2010, a joint venture with African Parks has seen Akagera return to its former glories.
The National Park is named after the Akagera River that flows along its eastern boundary and feeds into a labyrinth of lakes of which the largest is Lake Ihema. The forest-fringed lakes, papyrus swamps, savannah plains, and rolling highlands combine to make Akagera among the most scenic reserves anywhere in Africa. It has exceptional levels of biodiversity and forms the largest protected wetland in central Africa.
Akagera National Park combines well with Nyungwe and the Volcanoes NP to offer a great safari element as it is home to many large plains game species as well as species restricted to the papyrus swamps such as the Sitatunga and the sought-after Shoebill Stork. Notable plains game include elephant, buffalo, topi, zebra, waterbuck, roan antelope, and eland. Other antelope are duiker, oribi, bohor reedbuck, klipspringer, bushbuck and impala. Of the primates, olive baboons, vervets, and the secretive blue monkey are seen during the day, with bushbabies often seen on night drives.
If you are looking for a variation on the usual safari experience, a boat trip on Lake Ihema will not disappoint. Drift along the forest-fringed lake edge, past huddles of hippos and basking crocodiles.
Due to its wide variety of habitats, Akagera National Park is an important ornithological site with nearly 500 bird species. The rare and elusive shoebill shares the papyrus with other rarities such as the exquisite papyrus gonolek and countless other water birds that inhabit the wetlands in large numbers. From the vast concentrations of waterfowl to the myriad of savanna species, there is never a dull moment, with more than 500 species recorded in Akagera. Serious birders can seek out several endemic species as well as rare gems such as the near-threatened papyrus gonolek (Laniarius mufumbiri), which is restricted to papyrus swamps, the localized red-faced barbet (Lybius bidentatus) and the sought-after swamp flycatcher (Muscicapa boehmi).
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