Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (7044)
Uganda, Africa
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Global KBA criteria: A1a, A1b, A1c, B2
Year of last assessment: 2024
National site name: Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Central coordinates: Latitude: -1.0400, Longitude: 29.6900
System: terrestrial
Elevation (m): 1190 to 2607
Area of KBA (km2): 319.40061
Protected area coverage (%): 95.56
KBA classification: Global
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: The park lies on the edge of the Albertine (or Western) Rift Valley and occupies the highest block of the Kigezi highlands, also known as the Rukiga highlands. It is located on Uganda’s border with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The topography of the park is extremely rugged and much dissected, especially in the higher southern sector. The only flat area of any size is Mubwindi swamp (c.80 ha). The remainder (almost all forested) consists of narrow, very steep-sided valleys bounded by hill crests, spanning altitudes between 1,400 m in the northern sector and 2,600 m in the south. The forest is one of the largest in East Africa that contains both medium-altitude and montane forest in a continuum. As a result of its wide altitudinal range and relatively large size, and its probable role as a Pleistocene refugium, the species-richness of the forest is extremely high, for both flora and fauna. This forest is believed to be a mere remnant of a very large forest which once covered much of western Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and eastern DRC. Today, Bwindi is an ecological island surrounded by one of the highest human population densities in Africa (100–450 individuals/km²). Immediately beyond its borders, there is virtually no natural forest remaining and much of the land is intensively cultivated. The Institute of Tropical Forest Conservation, managed by Mbarara University of Science and Technology, is based at Ruhija. The park is host to considerable ecotourism activities, particularly gorilla-tracking and birdwatching.
Rationale for qualifying as KBA: Bwindi Impenetrable National Park has 10 global KBA trigger species recognised. These include eastern gorilla (Gorilla graueri), narrow-headed shrew (Crocidura stenocephala), and Rham's Brush-furred rat (Lophuromys rahmi) together with seven bird species: green broadbill (Pseudocalyptomena graueri), Grauer's rush warbler (Bradypterus graueri), Grauer's warbler (Graueria vittata), Handsome francolin (Pternistis nobilis), Rwenzori tauraco (Gallirex johnstoni), Shelly's crimsonwing (Cryptospiza shelleyi) and Chapin's flycatcher (Fraseria lendu).
Manageability of the site: The site is managed by Uganda Wildlife Authority as a national park and is one of the main income generating parks in Uganda using the revenue from mountain gorilla tourism to support other protected areas throughout the country.
Supersedes another site: Boundary also revised to use shapefile used by Uganda Government - you will see it follows the forest boundary on satellite imagery more accurately
Other site values: There is a small community of Batwa living at the edge of the park who have some access rights.
Delineation rationale: The boundary of the site follows the legally gazetted boundary of the national park as recognised by the Uganda Government
Habitats
Land use: The site is managed for conservation and tourism by Uganda Wildlife Authority. Some multiple use activities are allowed by licenced users of the local community such as the gathering of medicinal plants.
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Artificial - Terrestrial | 1 | |
| Forest | 97 |
Threats
| Threat level 1 | Threat level 2 | Threat level 3 | Timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Biological resource use | Hunting & collecting terrestrial animals | Ongoing | |
| Biological resource use | Logging & wood harvesting | Unintentional effects: subsistence/small scale (species being assessed is not the target) [harvest] | Ongoing |
| Invasive & other problematic species, genes & diseases | Invasive non-native/alien species/diseases | Named species | Ongoing |
| Agriculture & aquaculture | Livestock farming & ranching | Agro-industry grazing, ranching or farming | Ongoing |
| Invasive & other problematic species, genes & diseases | Invasive non-native/alien species/diseases | Unspecified species | Ongoing |
| Biological resource use | Gathering terrestrial plants | Unintentional effects (species being assessed is not the target) | Ongoing |