Kazinga channel cruise sightseeing hippos, buffalos, elephants and birds
August 22, 2010

Uganda is not just gorilla and chimpanzee, but the country offers a tremendous variety of wildlife, including many rare birds, as well as amazing landscapes changing from drier savannah to rainforests. A cruise in Kazinga channel, in Queen Elizabeth Nation Park, has given us the opportunity to see hundreds of hippos and buffalos, drinking elephants, nile crocodiles, impalas and countless birds immersed into a landscape of rare beauty.

The Kazinga channel is a natural stream of water 32 kilometers long, connecting lake Edward with lake George in western Uganda. Because of the rich wildlife, the Kazinga channel is one of the most interesting place to visit during any safari to Queen Elizabeth national park. A relaxing cruise of a couple of hours, lets to see hundreds of hippos, buffaloes, elephants and other typical ugandan wildlife, immersed into a spectacular landscape. Most animals come here from the surrounding savannah, to drink and to search for some fresh grass.

The papyrus abounds along the shores of Kazinga channel and everywhere the water is not too deep.

We soon meet an enormous Nile crocodile, a formidable predator often difficult to be distinguished between the vegetation.

A buffalo.

	Hippopotamus pictures. In these hippos pictures, we are very lucky to see an adult hippopotamus together with its very small calf, out of the water in the middle of the day. The hippos have a very sensitive skin, so they normally avoid the sunshine, to stay immersed into shallow waters. The hippo baby is so cute, and he doesn't leave the mother for a second, as she offer the best defense towards the many possible predators.

Buffalo pictures. The cruise into Kazinga channel, in western Uganda and inside Queen Elizabeth national park, continues along the shores of this natural river, where there are large herds of buffaloes.

We see a giant Nile Monitor Lizard ( Varanus niloticus ), the biggest lizard that can be found in Uganda and thru Africa. It feeds largely on eggs, fishes, insects and some bigger animal too.

Nile crocodile pictures: we see another big crocodile resting near an herd of buffaloes.

This enormous buffalo seems to turn well away from this threatening Nile crocodile.

	More hippo pictures. During the safari in Kazinga channel, we continue to see dozens (perhaps hundreds) of hippos.

	River warthogs are also very common. As the grass is very low and their neck is very short, they have to eat by folding their knees. They are so cute and odd! The river warthog can be distinguished from the common warthog, as they have shorter tusks and longer hairs.

Elephants pictures. Elephants abounds as well, because they come in Kazinga channel from the surrounding savannah, to drink and to eat some green vegetation.

	More buffaloes pictures. We continue to see herds of buffaloes having a rest along the shores of Kazinga channel.

This safari to Kazinga channel confirms that Uganda is an excellent destination for birding trips, as there are countless birds species, most of them very rare and unique.
Glossy Ibis picture ( Plegadis falcinellus )	Yellow-billed Stork picture ( Mycteria ibis )
Cormorants pictures ( Phalacrocorax carbo )
Saddle-billed Stork picture ( Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis )	While Pelican picture ( Pelecanus onocrotalus )
Heron picture.	African Fishing Eagle picture ( Haliaeetus vocifer )

	The cruise into Kazinga channel ends near a small fisherman town, where people live together with elephants, hippopotamuses and cormorants.

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