Phinda was once farmland that has been returned to the wild, which is what "phinda" means in Zulu, the local language of the area.

Every animal in the reserve had to be re-introduced....a major job for the owners who first had to decide what wildlife was best suited to the area…Besides the re-introduction of over 50 different animals species including the BIG FIVE other smaller creatures have naturally found there own way back into the reserve.