African Jacana
Actophilornis africanus
Habitat
Aquatic
Diet
Invertebrate
Active Time
Diurnal
Size
189 g
About This Species
This distinctive wetland bird has elongated toes that let it walk across floating vegetation such as water lilies, and is found on freshwater lakes, marshes, and slow rivers across sub-Saharan Africa. It forages most actively in early morning and late afternoon, when it can be seen picking insects from lily pads or overturning leaves.
Ethical Viewing Guidelines
- View from a hide, boat, or shoreline at a distance that does not push birds off their floating platforms, since males alone incubate eggs and brood chicks on exposed nests and can be flushed easily.
- Avoid approaching nesting territory during the breeding season and respect protected wetland regulations.
LCAvesCharadriiformesJacanidae
Seasonal Activity
144,234 sightings · 2000–2026
Citizen science records via GBIF
All monthsThis month
Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Charadriiformes
- Family
- Jacanidae
Traits
- Diet
- Invertebrate
- Foraging
- Aquatic
- Activity
- Diurnal
- Body mass
- 189 g
Photo
(c) Nico Vromant, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Nico Vromant
CC-BY-NC-4.0
Occurrence data from GBIF.