Kibale protects a block of moist evergreen rainforest in western Uganda, contiguous in the south with Queen Elizabeth National Park via a wildlife corridor. It is best known for primates: thirteen species occur here, the highest concentration in East Africa.
Chimpanzee tracking is the principal activity, with several habituated communities and a success rate that is consistently among the highest on the continent. A longer habituation experience allows visitors to spend most of a day with researchers and a community that is still being acclimatised to human presence.
Alongside chimpanzees the forest holds red colobus, black-and-white colobus, grey-cheeked mangabey, L’Hoest’s monkey and olive baboon, plus forest elephant and buffalo that are rarely seen but present. The adjacent Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary, run by the local community, is excellent for birds.