Lesser bushbaby Uganda is a tiny nocturnal primate common in Uganda’s woodland and forest-edge habitats, the enormous eyes and loud call making it one of the most captivating animals to encounter on a Uganda night drive. The lesser bushbaby, or northern lesser galago, is a tiny nocturnal primate weighing around 200 g, with huge eyes, large mobile ears and a long tail. It lives in savannah woodland and acacia country, leaping between branches several metres at a time. In Uganda you can see it on night drives and around lodges in Lake Mburo, Murchison Falls, Queen Elizabeth and Kidepo, usually as a pair of glowing eyes in the torchlight.

Lesser Bushbaby Uganda: The Wide-Eyed Night Primate Guide

Habits

Bushbabies feed on tree gum, especially from acacias, and on insects caught by hand in quick grabs. In the dry season gum can make up most of their diet. They sleep by day in tree holes or dense tangles, often in small groups, and forage alone at night. Their legs are built for jumping, and they mark their routes by wetting their hands and feet with urine, which also improves grip.

Bushbabies in Uganda

Uganda has several galago species. The lesser bushbaby lives in drier savannah and woodland. Forest parks such as Kibale and Bwindi have dwarf galagos instead, smaller species that are harder to see high in the canopy. Bushbaby calls, a repeated croaking or crying sound, are a common night noise at savannah lodges.

Where to see it

Night drives in Lake Mburo and Murchison and lodge gardens at dusk give the best chances. The gorilla permit costs US$800, or US$600 in April, May and November. See our guides to night safari animals, the potto, Lake Mburo and night game drives.

Frequently asked questions

Distribution and Habitat in Uganda

The lesser bushbaby (lesser galago) is found across Uganda in woodland, acacia savannah, forest edge, and even suburban gardens and plantations. It is one of the most abundant primates in Uganda in terms of population density — studies in woodland habitats have found up to 100 bushbabies per square kilometre — but its strictly nocturnal behaviour means it is almost never seen on standard day activities. Spotlighting on night drives and night walks in all of Uganda’s national parks regularly produces bushbaby sightings, recognisable by the brilliant orange-red eyeshine reflecting from the spotlight beam.

Anatomy for Night Life

The lesser bushbaby is a master of nighttime locomotion. Its enormous eyes — among the largest relative to body size of any mammal — gather light efficiently in near-darkness. The ears are independently mobile, allowing precise sound localisation of insects in vegetation. The hind legs are extraordinarily powerful for their size, allowing vertical leaps of over 2 metres and horizontal jumps of up to 5 metres between branches. In one night, a single bushbaby may leap this distance hundreds of times as it forages through its home range. The sticky-pad-like toepads enhance grip on smooth surfaces.

Conservation Status

The lesser bushbaby is classified as Least Concern by the IUCN and is common across sub-Saharan Africa. Uganda’s population is large and stable.

Finding Bushbabies in Uganda

Night drives in any of Uganda’s savannah or woodland national parks are highly likely to produce bushbaby sightings — the brilliant eyeshine is hard to miss once you begin scanning with a spotlight. Listen for the loud, child-like cry that gives the bushbaby its common name. Spotlighted individuals will freeze briefly before leaping away.

Bushbabies: Uganda’s Night Primate Community

Uganda has at least three bushbaby (galago) species: the lesser bushbaby (Galago senegalensis), found in savannah and woodland across the country; the thick-tailed bushbaby (Otolemur crassicaudatus), a larger species of forest edge and woodland; and the east African bushbaby (Galagoides orinus), a smaller forest species. The lesser bushbaby is the most commonly spotted on night drives in savannah zones; the thick-tailed bushbaby is heard more often than seen, producing a remarkable call resembling a crying human child that is one of the most disorienting sounds of the African night for first-time visitors. All species have the characteristic enormous eyes and ears, but the thick-tailed bushbaby is considerably larger than the lesser bushbaby.

Bushbabies in Uganda are heard far more often than they are seen. On warm nights throughout the country — from the national park campsites to forest-edge lodges — the calls of lesser or thick-tailed bushbabies are a regular part of the acoustic landscape after dark. Night drives are the most reliable method for visual encounters; experienced drivers know to scan grass and branch edges for eyeshine rather than expecting to see the animal in open view. The rapid, agile leaps of a spotted bushbaby in the headlights — covering up to 2 metres in a single bound — are one of the most impressive demonstrations of locomotor adaptation in Uganda’s wildlife.