Avian Safaris

Avian Safaris is a Uganda-based birding operator founded by Crammy Wanyama, a Ugandan birding guide, photographer, and former corporate marketer who entered the industry through the Uganda Safari Guides Association's introductory program in 2010. The company runs trips across the Albertine Rift region — Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, eastern DRC — and into Kenya, Tanzania, and South Sudan. Wanyama has been recognised by USAGA as Best Birding Guide and Best Guide in Uganda, and is known among guests for an unusual specialty: he can identify a high percentage of regional bird species by call alone. He came to birding from a music background and frequently links bird vocalisations to musical phrases — useful in vocally-dense families like Cisticolidae and Alaudidae. For Kenya specifically, the company's itineraries pair the standard Kenyan circuit (Maasai Mara, Rift Valley lakes, Mount Kenya, Kakamega Forest, the coastal Sokoke specialities) with cross-border extensions into Uganda for Shoebill at Mabamba Swamp and Albertine Rift endemics in Bwindi. They co-lead tours with partner outfits including Bird Uganda Safaris and Batis Birding Safaris.