Jacana jacana
Silhouette: Burton Robert, USFWS · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The wattled jacana (Jacana jacana) is a wader in the family Jacanidae found throughout much of South America east of the Andes, as well as western Panama and Trinidad. It is the only species in the Jacanidae family with such a large distribution. Wattled jacanas have long toes and claws which help them walk through aquatic vegetation. Like the majority of species of jacanas, the female is larger than the male, and forms harems of up to 4 or 5 males at any given time. There is also a major difference in proportional development or ornamentation (facial crest and wing size) and defense (length of wing spur) relative to body size when compared to males.
"Jacana" comes from the Tupi word ñaha'nã which means "very loud bird". The wattled jacana lays four black-marked brown eggs in a floating nest. The male, as with other jacanas and some other wader families like the phalaropes, takes responsibility for incubation, with two eggs held between each wing and the breast. The females are polyandrous and will help to defend the nests of up to four mates.
These are conspicuous and unmistakable birds. They are 17–23 cm (6.7–9.1 in) long, but the... Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Barranquilla | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 2 | Santa Cruz de la Sierra | 🇧🇴 Bolivia | |
| 3 | Buenos Aires | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 4 | Curitiba | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 5 | Fortaleza | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 6 | Asuncion | 🇵🇾 Paraguay | |
| 7 | Recife | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 8 | Campo Grande | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 9 | João Pessoa | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 10 | Belém | 🇧🇷 Brazil |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Diego Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Prague Zoo | 🇨🇿 Czechia | |
| 3 | National Zoological Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Shedd Aquarium | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | ZooParc de Beauval | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 6 | Zürich Zoo | 🇨🇭 Switzerland | |
| 7 | Barcelona Zoo | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 8 | San Diego Zoo Safari Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Caldwell Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Houston Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 11 | Cologne Zoological Garden | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 12 | London Zoo | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 13 | Aquarama Barcelona | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 14 | Vogelpark Avifauna | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | |
| 15 | Aviario Nacional de Colombia | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 16 | Georgia Aquarium | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 17 | Tracy Aviary | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 18 | Dallas World Aquarium | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 19 | Bird Kingdom | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 20 | Rákosův pavilon | 🇨🇿 Czechia | |
| 21 | Velemlokárium | 🇨🇿 Czechia | |
| 22 | Cologne Zoo Aquarium | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 23 | Montreal Biodome | 🇨🇦 Canada |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Wattled Jacana sighting in Tambopata National Reserve on a given day, based on 82 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 328th most-seen of the 550 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
August and September
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Wattled Jacana in Tambopata National Reserve on a given day, against under 5% in October to July, the lowest months. Those are among Tambopata National Reserve's driest months, with about 80 mm of rain a month against 420 mm in February.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Wattled Jacana sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
16th of 26
Of the 26 parks where we can rate Wattled Jacana sightings, Tambopata National Reserve ranks 16th at under 5%. The best odds are in Iberá National Park (Argentina, about 70%), Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas (Brazil, about 60%) and Soberanía National Park (Panama, about 50%). All parks ranked.
Same order: Charadriiformes
The closest relatives of the Wattled Jacana that you can see in Tambopata National Reserve (order Charadriiformes, Shorebirds and Allies) are Large-billed Tern (about 20%), Black Skimmer (about 10%) and Yellow-billed Tern (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Wattled Jacana is recorded against all the birds logged in Tambopata National Reserve (82 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
