The crested crane, Uganda’s national symbol, appears on the country’s flag and coat of arms.
However, these beautiful birds are now considered endangered due to the loss of their wetland habitats to farming. There are only about 20,000 of them left in the world.
As people continue to drain and reclaim swampland for farming, cranes have fewer places to nest and breed.
Communities in Kabale, in the south-west, are working to protect the crane and the wetlands where it lives.
Convincing locals to give up potential farming land has not been easy, but members of the community have now come on board as so-called “crane custodians”.
They keep an eye on the birds in their localities, report any that are injured or killed, as well as pairs that have nested or have chicks.
Jimmy Muheebwa of Nature Uganda says the number of cranes has now stabilised.
But Uganda has already lost over 40% of its wetlands in the last two decades. So in some regions, it might be too late for the cranes.