African Jacana
Actophilornis africanus
The African Jacana (Actophilornis africanus) is a uncommon jacana found in 41 countries, weighing about 189 g. The African jacana is a wader in the family Jacanidae.
About the African Jacana
The African jacana is a wader in the family Jacanidae. It has long toes and long claws that enable it to walk on floating vegetation in shallow lakes, its preferred habitat. It is widely distributed in sub-Saharan Africa. For the origin and pronunciation of the name, see Jacanidae.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How to identify it
The African jacana is a conspicuous and unmistakable bird. It measures 23 to 31 cm (9.1 to 12.2 in) in overall length. As in other jacanas, the female is on average larger than the male. Males can weigh from 115 to 224 g (4.1 to 7.9 oz), averaging 137 g (4.8 oz) and females from 167 to 290 g (5.9 to 10.2 oz), averaging 261 g (9.2 oz). Alongside the similarly-sized Madagascar jacana, this appears to be the heaviest jacana species. They have chestnut upperparts with black wingtips, rear neck, and eyestripe.
Where it lives
Recorded as a rare visitor in Equatorial Guinea, Somalia.
When to see it
The African Jacana can be seen all year round, with peak activity in November. It is a resident species across most of its range.
Watch the African Jacana on live cams
Browse all 118 bird cams worldwide, live and seasonal, by region and species.
Easily confused with
Quick questions
- How do you identify an African Jacana?
- The African jacana is a conspicuous and unmistakable bird. Full identification notes are on this page.
- How big is an African Jacana?
- The African Jacana is a medium sized bird weighing about 189 g.
- Where can you see an African Jacana?
- The African Jacana occurs in 41 countries, including South Africa, Botswana, Kenya, Uganda and Zimbabwe.
- What birds look similar to an African Jacana?
- The African Jacana is most easily confused with the Madagascar Jacana.
- Is the African Jacana endangered?
- The African Jacana is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.
Learn the African Jacana for real
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