Situated close to one of South Africa’s most densely populated areas in Johannesburg, the Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve plays an important role in outdoor recreation, environmental education and resource management.
Suikerbosrand supports a large variety of plant and animal species. Vegetation types range from open grassland on hillsides and plains to wooded gorges and acacia woodland, marshland and fynbos.
The reserve was named after the sugarbush (suikerbos), which is spread throughout the reserve. The fast-disappearing bankenveld grassland also occurs here, making the Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve one of the Highveld’s most valuable reserves.
Mammal species include mountain reedbuck, common duiker and steenbok, grey duiker, baboon, oribi, eland, blesbok, springbok, red hartebeest, black wildebeest, kudu and zebra. Predators roaming this vast sanctuary include cheetah, brown hyena and other smaller species. Over 200 bird species can be observed here.