Difference between revisions of "African Jacana" - BirdForum Opus

Latest revision as of 09:12, 8 December 2021

Photo © by CollinBax
Lowersabie, Kruger National Park, South Africa, August 2008

Actophilornis africanus

Actophilornis africana

Identification

23–31 cm (9-12¼ in), mass 115-274 g
Adult:

Chestnut upperparts with black wingtips, rear neck and eyestripe
White underparts
Chestnut belly patch
Blue bill extends up as a coot-like head shield
Legs and very long toes are grey
Eyes are dark brown

Sexes alike but the females are larger than males

Similar Species

Juvenile
Photo © by JohnathanAKR
Kruger National Park, South Africa, August 2007

Immature: is similar to adult Lesser Jacana, but much bigger; above light brown (dark brown in adult Lesser Jacana), below white; breast washed golden (no gold in adult Lesser Jacana); flanks brown; frontal shield small (not visible in field); crown and hind neck blackish brown (crown rufous in adult Lesser Jacana); black line through eye; buff eyebrow (eyebrow of adult Lesser Jacana white, forehead buff).

Distribution

Widespread thoughout sub-Saharan Africa
Western Africa: Mauritania, Senegambia, Senegal, The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Mali, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, Niger, Chad, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Congo and Angola
Eastern Africa: Sudan, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Somalia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Zanzibar, Zambia, Mozambique and Malawi
Southern Africa: Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, South Africa, KwaZulu-Natal, Lesotho and eSwatini
African Islands: Saint Helena and Madagascar

Taxonomy

Photo © by volker sthamer
Mbamba Swamps, Uganda, July 2018

This is a monotypic species^[1].

Habitat

Lagoons, lakes, pans, river backwaters; usually with fringing vegetation and floating water lilies, Polygonum and other water plants.

Behaviour

The Jacanas are a group of waders in the order Charadriiformes. Their huge feet and claws enable them to walk on floating vegetation in the shallow lakes that are their preferred habitat.

Diet

Their diet consists mostly of insects and worms, with other arthropods such as spiders and crustaceans.

Breeding

It lays four black-marked brown eggs in a floating nest. A polyandrous species. The males, as in some other wader families like the phalaropes, take responsibility for incubation.

Movements

It is sedentary apart from seasonal dispersion.

References

Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2021. The eBird/Clements checklist of Birds of the World: v2021. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
Avibase
Animal Pictures Archive

List of references

Recommended Citation

BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) African Jacana. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 27 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/African_Jacana

External Links

Search for photos of African Jacana in the gallery

GSearch checked for 2020 platform.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-;Actophilornis africanus
+[[Image:African_Jacanaa.jpg|thumb|550px|right|Photo &copy; by {{user|CollinBax|CollinBax}}<br />Lowersabie, [[Kruger National Park]], [[South Africa]],  August 2008]]
-[[Image:African_Jacana.jpg|thumb|550px|right|Photo by IvoZafirov]]
+;[[:Category:Actophilornis|Actophilornis]] africanus<br />
-==Description==
+''Actophilornis africana''
+==Identification==
+–31 cm (9-12¼ in), mass 115-274 g<br />
+'''Adult:'''
+*Chestnut upperparts with black wingtips, rear neck and eyestripe
+*White underparts
+*Chestnut belly patch
+*Blue bill extends up as a coot-like head shield
+*Legs and very long toes are grey
+*Eyes are dark brown<br />
+Sexes alike but the females are larger than males
+====Similar Species====
+[[Image:African Jacana Juvanile.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Juvenile <br />Photo &copy; by {{user|JohnathanAKR|JohnathanAKR}}<br />[[Kruger National Park]], [[South Africa]], August 2007]]
+'''Immature:''' is similar to adult [[Lesser Jacana]], but much bigger; above light brown (dark brown in adult Lesser Jacana), below white; breast washed golden (no gold in adult Lesser Jacana); flanks brown; frontal shield small (not visible in field); crown and hind neck blackish brown (crown rufous in adult Lesser Jacana); black line through eye; buff eyebrow (eyebrow of adult Lesser Jacana white, forehead buff).
+==Distribution==
+Widespread thoughout sub-Saharan [[Africa]]<br />
+'''Western Africa''': [[Mauritania]], [[Senegambia]], [[Senegal]], The [[Gambia]], [[Guinea-Bissau]], [[Guinea]], [[Mali]], [[Sierra Leone]], [[Liberia]], [[Ivory Coast]], [[Burkina Faso]], [[Ghana]], [[Togo]], [[Benin]], [[Nigeria]], [[Niger]], [[Chad]], [[Cameroon]], [[Central African Republic]], [[Equatorial Guinea]], [[Gabon]], [[Congo]] and [[Angola]]<br />
+'''Eastern Africa''': [[Sudan]], [[Ethiopia]], [[Djibouti]], [[Somalia]], [[Kenya]], [[Uganda]], [[Rwanda]], [[Burundi]], [[Tanzania]], [[Zanzibar]], [[Zambia]], [[Mozambique]] and [[Malawi]]<br />
+'''Southern Africa''': [[Namibia]], [[Botswana]], [[Zimbabwe]], [[South Africa]], [[KwaZulu-Natal]], [[Lesotho]] and [[eSwatini]]<br />
+'''African Islands''': Saint Helena and [[Madagascar]]
-The African Jacana (Actophilornis africana) is a jacana. The jacanas are a group of waders in the family Charadriidae, which are identifiable by their huge feet and claws which enable them to walk on floating vegetation in the shallow lakes that are their preferred habitat. They are found worldwide within the tropical zone.
+==Taxonomy==
+[[Image:STH 4509.JPG|thumb|350px|right|Photo &copy; by {{user|volker+sthamer|volker sthamer}}<br />Mbamba Swamps, [[Uganda]], July 2018]]
+This is a [[Dictionary_M-O#M|monotypic]] species<sup>[[#References|[1]]]</sup>.
-African Jacana breeds throughout sub-Saharan Africa. It is sedentary apart from seasonal dispersion. It lays four black-marked brown eggs in a floating nest. The males, as in some other wader families like the phalaropes, take responsibility for incubation.
+==Habitat==
+Lagoons, lakes, pans, river backwaters; usually with fringing vegetation and floating water lilies, Polygonum and other water plants.
+==Behaviour==
+The Jacanas are a group of waders in the order [[:Category:Charadriiformes|Charadriiformes]]. Their huge feet and claws enable them to walk on floating vegetation in the shallow lakes that are their preferred habitat.
+====Diet====
+Their diet consists mostly of insects and worms, with other arthropods such as spiders and crustaceans.
+====Breeding====
+It lays four black-marked brown eggs in a floating nest. A polyandrous species. The males, as in some other wader families like the phalaropes, take responsibility for incubation.
+====Movements====
+It is sedentary apart from seasonal dispersion.
-These are conspicuous and unmistakable birds. They are 30cm long, but the females are larger than the males. They have chestnut upperparts with black wingtips, rear neck and eyestripe. The underparts are white, with a chestnut belly patch in adult birds. The blue bill extends up as a coot-like head shield, and the legs and very long toes are grey.
+==References==
+#{{Ref-Clements6thAug21}}#Avibase
+#Animal Pictures Archive
+{{ref}}
+==External Links==
+{{GSearch|Actophilornis+african*}}
+<br />
-The African Jacana's food is insects and other invertebrates picked from the floating vegetation or the water’s surface
+[[Category:Birds]][[Category:Actophilornis]]
+{{GS-checked}}
-==Identification==
+<br />
-Location:  Lake Victoria, Uganda
+<br />
-==External Links==
-{{GSearch|Actophilornis+africanus}}
-[[Category:Birds]]