1. Manager, EIA, Uganda Wildlife Authority
Climate change impacts on rangelands in Lake Mburo National Park-UGANDA
Ms. Justine Namara
Manager, EIA, Uganda Wildlife Authority
IAIA17- MONTREAL CANADA

2. Introduction
Uganda has got 10 National Parks and 12 wildlife reserves with unique attractions managed by Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA)
Lake Mburo National Park (LMNP) is one of the smallest National Parks with an area of 370sq.km and lies in south western part of Uganda

3. Lake Mburo National Park

4. Attractions The park receives almost 20,000 tourists annually
Offers game drives and viewing of wild animals like the zebra, impalas, buffalos and waterbucks and giraffe
Rich bird life -350 different bird species recorded e.g Papyrus yellow warbler, shoebill, gonolek etc.
Rich cultural heritage of the surrounding communities who are mostly cattle keepers.

5. Zebras in the park

7. Ecosystems in the park Grassland Wetland Forests Woodland
Water bodies – lakes, rivers

8. Most of the wildlife in the park are grazers and they tend to look for areas that are open which are grassland areas

10. Landscape Characteristics
The park lies within the cattle corridor with
High rainfall variability
Periodic late onset of rains resulting in drought
The Park also lies in rain shadow of Lake Victoria with two dry seasons in a year. Long dry season starts from June to September and the short dry season from December to late February or early March.
It is surrounded by cattle ranches

11. Cattle corridor

12. Vegetation characteristics
The vegetation in LMNP has been changing from open grassland to woodland type dominated by Acacia species. The spread of Acacia species is often associated with the reduction in grazing areas, spread of unpalatable grasses and general deterioration of habitat quality.
This reduces the grazing area of the animals

13. Invasive species have invaded Lake Mburo National Park in recent years mostly Acacia species (A. hockii and A. geradii
Acacia hockii has covered 60%of the park
Other invasive species include Lantana camara and water hyacinth.
Herbaceous plants which are unpalatable have chased grazers out of the park into the surrounding ranches increasing human wildlife conflicts

14. Impacts experienced
For more than 30 years, there has been variations in the rainfall within the park
The variations in rainfall has led to drying of valley dams that have been excavated in the surrounding communities
This leads to communities invading the park to look for water and pasture which has compromised the integrity of the park
In 2016, the park experienced drought that resulted in death of wildlife
More than 100 animals of different species died.

15. STARVATION DUE TO SHORTAGE OF GRASS AND WATER

16. ANIMAL MORTALITY DUE TO LACK OF WATER AND PASTURE

17. ANIMAL STUCK IN MUD IN SEARCH OF WATER

18. Assessments done
There are a number of assessments done to come up with adaptation strategies
Sustainable Water availability
Habitat suitability- invasive species, habitat modification
Carrying capacity of the park especially as the area of the park was reduced in 1990s

19. Adaptation strategies
UWA has de-silted a number of dams to ensure availability of water to animals
In addition a number of valley dams have been excavated in various locations especially areas away from water bodies
Also planning to draw water from the lake to prevent future droughts from having such devastating effects on the animals in the park.

20. De-silting existing dams to store water for wildlife during the dry season

21. Sinking of new valley tanks that would store enough water for wildlife during the drought

22. Manipulation of habitat to create open areas for grazing

24. Conclusion
Given that the park is located within a cattle corridor – semi arid areas, means that the area will always have long droughts and these are becoming even harsher.
UWA is putting in place a number of measures to adapt to the eminent climate change
Detailed assessment are being done to find the lasting solutions in order to save this important ecosystem and the biodiversity

25. THANK YOU
Conserving for Generations