A sanctuary for shoebills
‘Where the water meets the sky’ is a fascinating community-owned conservation area that is truly off the beaten track. The meaning of ‘Bangweulu’ underscores how 17 rivers feed the Great Bangweulu Basin that seems to the reach to the horizon and the blue sky beyond. An incredible area in Zambia’s little-visited Northern Province, it is a maze of channels, islands, lagoons and wetlands that support an impressive level of biodiversity.
On land, endemic black lechwe and tssesebe (the fastest antelope in the world) are stalked by the fastest predator. Cheetah were successfully reintroduced after more then a hundred years as appreciation for and care of the Bangweulu Wetlands soared. And while the game is good, the birds are truly the stars of the show. Around 10 percent of the world’s wattled cranes live here and it is an epicentre for shoebills (whose range is the waterways of central-east Africa). Shoebills are large, silent and literally statuesque: while hunting for fish or even small crocodiles, they can not move for hours. They are highly solitary and only three nests will be built in a square kilometre. They use their large wingspans to fly at good speeds but are non-migratory, preferring water with low oxygen levels (like bogs and marshes) where fish have to come to the surface more often to breath. If a shoebill safari is on your bucket list, then Bangweulu is the place to be.
Although shoebills are residents, the limited number of accommodation options in Bangweulu are only open during the dry season. Logistics depend on lower water levels and airstrips and roads can take a while to dry out after summer rains. Drier land also makes it possible to go on game drives to seek out other species such as endemic black lechwe and cheetah.
Bangweulu is not open to the public.
Bangweulu is not open to the public.
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