The possible extinction of flamingos on Lake Munyanyange in Katwe in Kasese district is threatening local tourism. Flamingos are famous for their bright pink feathers, stilt-like legs, and S-shaped necks. Lake Munyanyange is home to more than 50 different kinds of birds, but most of them are flamingos.
There are growing fears among domestic tourism promoters and conservationists over what seems to be a possible extinction of the birds following the reduction of their numbers around the lake. Conservationists think that the decline of flamingos is due to the destruction of their habitat, especially wetlands, disturbances caused by raising livestock, the growth of cities, and illegal trade.
The Katwe-Kabatoro Town Council LC III Chairperson, John Bosco Kananura, told URN that Munyanyange is the second highest revenue earner for the town council after the Katwe salt lake. The manager of the Munyanyange Caves lodge, which is next to the lake, Sulait Mabulu, says that fewer birds have led to a big drop in the number of tourists who want to watch birds in the area.
He says that it’s on very few occasions that one can find a high concentration of the white and pink birds on the lake, a problem he attributes to the high human population around the lake.
Nicholas Kagongo, the director of Katwe ecotourism center, has urged the local authorities to expedite by-laws to help protect the lake area from destruction. He says they have been promoting community-based tourism in the habitat with these much-coveted birds so that the locals can benefit through bird-watching tourism.
Kagongo also says that there is a challenge for pastoralists whose animals feed on and destroy endemic grasses used by birds to build their nets where they lay eggs.
The Katwe-Kabatooro town council land board chairperson, John Maate, says the area of the settlement is a recommended distance from the lake. Kananura says they are starting awareness campaigns to encourage the community around the lake to preserve it and offer a quiet environment for the birds.
Uganda has 11 percent of the global bird diversity and 50 percent of Africa’s bird species diversity. However, the conservation of birds is still in its infancy. According to the Ministry of Tourism, the country generates more than US$ 6 million annually from birding tourism alone.