Maputo Special Reserve, Protected coastal area in Maputo Province, Mozambique

Maputo Special Reserve is a protected coastal area in the southern Maputo Province of Mozambique, covering lakes, wetlands, swamp forests, grasslands, and mangrove forests. It borders Maputo Bay and brings together a wide range of habitats within a single protected zone.

The area was set up in 1932 as an elephant reserve to protect local wildlife from hunting. The civil war that ended in 1992 left animal populations severely reduced, which led to major restocking efforts in the years that followed.

The park lies within the Lubombo Transfrontier Conservation Area, which joins protected land in Mozambique, South Africa and Eswatini; in 2025 UNESCO listed it as an extension of iSimangaliso Wetland Park. Its name recalls the old Maputo Elephant Reserve, proclaimed in 1932. Anvil Bay, a resort opened in 2015, and coastal campsites are the visitor infrastructure.

The park lies about 100 km southeast of Maputo city, in Matutuíne District, with Maputo Bay to the north and the South African border to the south. Access is by sandy tracks, so a four-wheel-drive vehicle is needed. Anvil Bay resort opened in 2015, and campsites stand along the coast. The elephants' most-used areas are being fenced to protect cultivated fields.

The reserve's coastal waters shelter dugongs, Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins, humpback whales, whale sharks, reef sharks and manta rays. Four sea turtle species — hawksbill, green, leatherback and loggerhead — also occur here. The marine section was added in 2009 as the Ponta do Ouro Partial Marine Reserve, covering 678 km².