Phinda is home to an abundance of wildlife, from the large mammals to the smallest antelope. However, it is the faster of predators that has a special place here. Having reintroduced cheetah to the area after an absence of over fifty years, Phinda has quickly established a reputation as one of the best places to view and photograph these rare cats. With much of Phinda dominated by a mosaic of various savanna habitats, these speedy carnivores have plenty of space to carry out their explosive hunting technique, as well as enough cover to protect and shelter their cubs. 

Along with cheetah, lion and leopard are tracked on the reserve on a daily basis and guests have a high likelihood of encountering these magnificent animals. Another success story at Phinda is that of both the white and the more endangered black rhino. Brought back from the brink of extinction, both the grass easting white rhino and the shrub grazing black rhino are doing well at the reserve. While the white rhino favours water holes and wallows, the black rhino indulges its inquisitive nature in constant solitary rambles.

The elegant nyala antelope is a frequent sight at Phinda, with the reserve boasting one of the highest densities of the species. With its dark brown coat, buttery yellow legs, shaggy mane and impossibly bushy tail, the male nyala is particularly spectacular, while the female contents itself with a less flashy chestnut coat. The rare sand forest in the northern parts of Phinda is the perfect environment for some of the rarer smaller species. The shy red duiker is found grazing on fallen leaves and fruit and the tiny suni, one of the smallest antelope species, may also be seen.           

Recent Sightings from Wildwatch.com

Saddle-billed stork - 01 August 2010
We had just stopped at a bird hide we have in the south of the reserve. It is situated on the edge of the water and surrounded by reeds and bulrushes. As we were looking over the water, some nyala that were drinking ran off and we saw a large bird come...
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Elephant swimming sentation - 01 August 2010
I was doing a transfer between Phinda Mountain Lodge and Phinda Forest Lodge over the middle of the day today and heard that a herd of elephants was drinking at one of the dams en route. We made our way directly there and as we arrived we were totally...
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So much to see, so little time - 28 July 2010
On our morning game drive we headed out in the search of elephants. The herds had been seen in the south of the reserve the previous afternoon. We tried the first tracks we found but this small group seemed to be inside a large dense area with no...
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