Kruger National Park in the 1980s

1980

 * August – The Nyalaland Trail opens near Punda Maria in the far north of the Park.

1981

 * April 21 – A research team collects specimens of the African lungfish Protopterus annectens brieni Poll in a small pan in the Pumbe sandveld on the border with Mozambique. This is the first record of this species in the Park as well as the Republic of South Africa.

1983

 * August - The Bushman Trail opens.

1984

 * February 24 - Berg-en-Dal rest camp officially opens.

1985

 * July - Lichtenstein's hartebeest reintroduced to the park.

1988

 * July 11 - The Gonde-Gonde incident: a park vehicle detonated a landmine a few kilometres south of Pafuri. No one was hurt.