The area is considered critical to the survival of a large number of animals species,including South Africa’ largest populations of hippopotamus (Hippopotomus amphibius), crocodile (Crocodylus niloticus), white-backed pelican (Pelecanus onocrotalus), and pink-backed pelican (P. rufescens). More than 530 species of birds use wetland and other areas of the lake region.  

These waters also are graced by 20,000 greater flamingos (Phoenicopterus ruber), 40,000 lesser flamingoes (P. minor), as well as thousands of ducks. With 36 species, this area has the highest diversity of amphibians in South Africa. Two species of sea turtles lay their eggs on the ocean shows of the eastern peninsula. Here, and nowhere else in the world, can one find hippopotamuses, crocodiles, and sharks sharing the same waters. 

For centuries, people have come to the St. Lucia Estuary for the food, materials, and beauty that it and the surrounding wetlands offer. To this day, thousands of Zulus harvest ncema grass (Juncus kraussii) each spring, which they use to make sleeping and sitting mats.

The European history of Lake St. Lucia begins in 1575, when the Portuguese explorer Manuel Peresterello landed in the area on the feast of St. Lucy. In 1897, the area was designated a Game Reserve. This reserve, together with a number of other conservation areas comprise the Greater St. Lucia Wetland Park.

The lands immediately around the lake have been sparsely populated and have supported little economic activity. In the 1960s, exotic pine trees were planted along the eastern shores, destroying native vegetation--a process that now is being reversed.

In 1986, the Government of South Africa designated St. Lucia Wetland Park as a Wetland of International Importance under the so-called Ramsar treaty. The Ramsar treaty aims to promote wise use of all wetlands and special protection for wetlands on the list of wetlands of international importance.