Queen Elizabeth

Founded in 1952 by merging the Lake George and Lake Edward Game Reserves, the area was first called Kazinga National Park. Two years later the park received its present name to mark a visit by Queen Elizabeth II, and the remaining communal grazing rights of the Songora herders were revoked, prompting a large displacement of people. Subsequent resettlements in the 2000s have been marked by conflict between livestock owners and predators, a situation that has drawn international conservation concern.

The park supports 95 mammal species and more than 600 bird species. African elephant, buffalo, Ugandan kob, hippopotamus, topi, waterbuck, warthog, giant forest hog, Nile crocodile, leopard, spotted hyena, chimpanzee and lion are regularly observed, with the lion population monitored through radio collars by the Uganda Carnivore Program. Volcanic cones and deep craters, such as the Katwe craters where salt is still extracted, add geological interest. In 2006 the park and the adjoining Virunga National Park were designated a lion conservation unit by the IUCN, highlighting its role as a potential Central African lion stronghold. The sight of lions scaling trees along the Ishasha riverbank remains the park’s most distinctive attraction.