African Jacana
Actophilornis africanus
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Cordats)
- ClassAves (Aus)
- OrderCharadriiformes (Caradriformes)
- FamilyJacanidae (Jacanas)
- GenusActophilornis (African and Madagascar Jacanas)
- SpeciesActophilornis africanus (African Jacana)
The African jacana (Actophilornis africanus) 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. Wikipedia →
<5% of wildlife watchers report a African Jacana sighting in Addo Elephant National Park, based on 6 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
Closest Relatives at Addo Elephant National Park
Blacksmith Lapwing
Vanellus armatus
Crowned Lapwing
Vanellus coronatus
Spotted Thick-knee
Burhinus capensis
Black-winged Stilt
Himantopus himantopus
Dominican Gull
Larus dominicanus
Sooty Gull
Ichthyaetus hemprichii
Water Thick-knee
Burhinus vermiculatus
Common Sandpiper
Actitis hypoleucos
Whimbrel
Numenius phaeopus
Common Greenshank
Tringa nebularia
African Black Oystercatcher
Haematopus moquini
Brown Skua
Stercorarius antarcticus
📅 Monthly Probability
☀️ When They're Spotted
Most active during daytime hours (6am–6pm) · across all parks (global)
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there
Parks Where Found
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a African Jacana in Addo Elephant National Park?
About 1% of wildlife watchers report a African Jacana sighting in Addo Elephant National Park, based on 6 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see African Jacana in Addo Elephant National Park?
April has the highest sighting rate for African Jacana in Addo Elephant National Park in our monthly data.