Kosi Bay Nature Reserve

About Kosi Bay Nature Reserve

The Kosi Bay Nature Reserve is situated on the coast in the northern part of KwaZulu Natal and surrounds the Kosi Bay lake system.

Did you know? The Kosi River Mouth is known as "the aquarium" because of the clarity of the water and the abundance of fish species found here.

The system consists of four lakes and a series of inter-connecting channels which drain via a sandy estuary into the Indian ocean. It is home to a variety of birds and wildlife including hippopotamus and crocodile.

This is the most pristine lake system on the South African Coast. The 11, 000 hectare Kosi Bay Nature Reserve is a tropical paradise of crystal-clear blue water and marshland, raffia, wild date and palm, mangrove swamp and sycamore fig forest that combine to provide a home for approximately 250 species of bird, among them the fish eagle and palmnut vulture, whitebacked heron and the night heron as well as purple and reed kingfisher.

Bushbuck, duiker and monkey inhabit the forested parts whilst hippopotamus and crocodile bask in and around the lakes and fish teem beneath their surfaces.

Humpback whales can be seen off the beaches on their northerly migration to calve in Mozambique and in December and January loggerhead and leatherback turtles come onto the beaches to lay their eggs in carefully prepared nests.

Please be aware that Kosi Bay is a high risk malaria area and visitors are advised to take precautions. Please consult your Doctor or Pharmacist about malaria prophylaxis prior to visiting the Kosi Bay Nature Reserve.