U.S. 501(c)(3) · Partners in Uganda

Protect the last living dinosaurs of the wetlands.

The Shoebill stork is one of the rarest birds on Earth. Friends of Save Shoebill funds locally led conservation in Uganda — land, education, and habitat — so this prehistoric hunter can keep standing watch over the papyrus.

Give to the sanctuary See the project

Balaeniceps rex

A bird that looks like it walked out of the Cretaceous.

Standing up to five feet tall with a shoe-shaped bill built to capture lungfish, the Shoebill is found in isolated East African swamps. Fewer than 5,300 remain. Hunting, poaching, and human pressure are shrinking the world they need to hunt in silence.

Friends of Save Shoebill Conservation Project is a U.S. public charity that raises funds and awareness for the Save Shoebill Conservation Project (SSCP) in Uganda — a community-based effort started by ornithologists and guides who live beside these birds every day.

We do not fly in and take over. We resource the people already on the water: monitoring, education, responsible tourism, and the first acres of a dedicated sanctuary.

3,300–5,300Shoebills left in the wild
VulnerableIUCN Red List status
3 acresSanctuary land already secured
501(c)(3)Tax-deductible U.S. gifts
Shoebill stork portrait — photo © Hans Hillewaert / CC BY-SA

On the ground

A sanctuary taking root in Uganda.

Our partners at SSCP work across Mabamba Bay, Murchison Falls, and Lake Mburo. Current focus: expanding habitat near Mburo National Park and training the neighbors to ensure a wetland stays a wetland.

Land first

We have acquired three acres as the start of a Shoebill sanctuary — habitat for the stork and the many other species that share its swamp.

A building that teaches

The next $5,000 builds a small field structure where SSCP can educate and train local people in conservation and responsible tourism — the income that makes protection pay.

Community, not extraction

Healthy Shoebills need healthy neighbors. The project funds monitoring, wetland care, and livelihoods so conservation is enjoyed by the creatures who live in the papyrus.

Shoebill stork facing the camera in a wetland

Why it matters

Save the bird, keep the swamp, support the village.

Shoebills are umbrella species. Protecting the quiet, deep wetlands they require also protects fish, water, and the tourism that can help sustain this crucial habitat.

SSCP was founded by people who spent years on the boats in Murchison Falls, including Kenneth Tumusiime, after witnessing the bird as a child and falling in love ever since. Friends of Save Shoebill exists so U.S. donors can put tax-deductible dollars directly behind that work.

Shoebill walking through ferns Shoebill standing in grass Shoebill looking toward the camera Close-up of a Shoebill with its bill open Shoebill stork in flight with wings spread over papyrus Shoebill flying low over wetland grass Close portrait of a Shoebill stork Shoebill chicks in a wetland nest
Shoebill rescued by Save Shoebill Conservation Project
Saved by SSCP

Follow along

Field notes and recent posts.

March 19, 2026 · Facebook

Water tank on the two-acre sanctuary

Progress on the Uganda sanctuary: a 10,000-liter tank is in place to harvest water and support construction. This is the kind of unglamorous gear that lets a field camp actually work.

Read on Facebook →

2025 · Land

Three acres secured

Friends of Save Shoebill has acquired three acres as the start of a sanctuary near Lake Mburo — habitat for Shoebills and the species that share the swamp.

Get in touch

Walk with us.

Friends of Save Shoebill Conservation Project

Also known as Save the Shoebills

U.S. 501(c)(3) public charity · EIN 88-2396668

Summerville / Charleston, South Carolina

Partner: Save Shoebill Conservation Project, Buliisa District & Lake Mburo region, Uganda

President: Ryan Burke

Info@SaveShoebill.com