What to Know About the African Jacana in Uganda?

The African Jacana in Uganda is one of the African Uganda Bird Species seen during Birding safari in Uganda. The African jacana is a wader in the family Jacanidae, identifiable by long toes and long claws that enable them to walk on floating vegetation in shallow lakes, their preferred habitat.

Jacanas are found in Uganda`s Murchison falls national park. It has a length between 23-31cm, the male weighs 137g and female 260g.

How Does the African Jacana in Uganda Look Like?

The African Jacana favors the freshwater wetlands with floating vegetation where it can move easily thanks to the long toes.

In this species, the female is larger than the male, and their mating system is reversed. The adult has rich chestnut to rufous-cinnamon upperparts, but rump and secondaries are darker and primaries are black.

The upper wing shows glossy sheen in good lighting. The black hindneck contrasts with the white fore neck. The tail is short.

The underparts are darker maroon-chestnut, except the chin, throat and fore neck which are white, turning golden yellow on the upper breast.

On the head, the pale blue bill extends to a large pale blue to grey blue frontal shield. The rest of the crown is black.

The head sides are white. The eyes are dark brown. The long legs and the very long toes are greyish-blue to olive-brown

The female has similar plumage but she is larger than the male. The immature has blackish washed brown crown and hindneck.

It has a white supercilium and the frontal shield is absent or slightly developed. The upperparts are pale brown. The underparts are white, and we can see an indistinct yellowish breast band.

How Does the African Jacana in Uganda Sing and Make Calls?

The African Jacana is a noisy bird. It utters sharp, ringing “krrrek”, also a shorter, rapid, loud and raspy “kreep-kreep-kreep” and a kind of barking “kyowrrr”.

The alarm calls are loud and noisy. While flying, it gives a rattling screech.

How Does the African Jacana in Uganda Feed?

The African Jacana feeds on aquatic insects and larvae, worms, snails and other arthropods. It may take seeds sometimes, when it forages on open cultivated areas.

It searches for preys by walking on the floating vegetation, thanks to the very long toes which spread the weight of its body over larger area.

How Does the African Jacana in Uganda Nest?

The male performs the nesting duties. It builds the nest, often on small floating islands over deep water.

The loose nest is a partially submerged pad of marshy vegetation, but it extends to about 2cm above the surface. It may be moved if the flooding threatens.

How Does the African Jacana in Uganda Breed?

The African Jacana can breed all year round in permanent wetlands, or seasonally according to the water levels.

The mating system of the African Jacana is reversed. The male performs all the nesting duties while the female has access to several males and defends the territories against other females.

The courtship displays are fairly simple. Both sexes solicit. They display from a loose nest platform, by circling each other, walking with low head in order to enhance the blue-grey frontal shield.

The female crouches and the male pecks at her body before to mount her. These displays can be repeated 4 to 5 times, but the cloacae contact occurs in only a small proportion of solicitations.

How Does the African Jacana in Uganda Reproduce?

The female lays 4 eggs, but not necessarily on the nest. She can lay the eggs on the floating vegetation without nest.

The eggs are pale brown with conspicuous black markings, making them almost invisible. They are very glossy. The male starts to incubate after the 3rd egg, and during about 20-26 days.

During the warmest hours of the day, it spends more time shading the eggs than incubating. It also may move the eggs to a new nest-site, and for that, it carries them under its wings.

When the chicks hatch, the eggshells are removed and carried away from the nest. The downy chicks are precocial.

They have pale and dark brown stripes above, and the underparts are white. The male does not feed them, but it accompanies the young while they feed themselves. It broods them under its wings, and can carry them as for the eggs.