Oori Nature Reserve

Oori Nature Reserve

Lying in the beautiful Crocodile River Valley some 40 minutes from Johannesburg, to the south of the Magaliesberg Mountains, lies the Oori Nature Reserve (Oori is Tswana for Crocodile).

The total area of about 750 hectares is made up of roughly 40 properties, all of which have done away with internal fencing in order to live in harmony with nature. The commonly held belief is that human habitation has almost always been at the expense of the environment and the conservancy is attempting to change this and return the area to what it was - every game species reintroduced, every tree replanted and every bird species released is another step along the path.

The reserve lies within a transitional zone between grassland and bushveld known as Bankenveld - rolling countryside and rocky ridges, principally dolomite, where trees find some protection against fire. Both the southern and eastern borders of the reserve are formed by the Crocodile River, once known as the Oori River by the Tswana people.

The reserve has already introduced 52 animals and residents are slowly planting indigenous trees, replacing those exotics mainly around dwellings, striving to keep existing eco-systems intact.