Northern Jacana

Appearance

The northern jacana has a dark brown body with a black head and neck. In addition its bill has yellow patches and its forehead has a wattle. It’s bill has a white base. When a jacana is in flight, its yellow primary and secondary feathers are visible. Juveniles have a white supercilium and white lores. The female jacana is around twice as big as the male, averaging compared to . Jacanas average 241 mm in length with a wingspan averaging 508 mm.

Status

Northern jacanas appear to be common throughout most of their range, but could become vulnerable with loss of wetlands.

Behavior

The northern jacana ranges Mexico to Panama, although they occasionally visit the southern United States. It mainly lives in coastal areas. Jacanas live on on floating vegetation in swamps, marshes, and ponds. They will feed on insects on the surface of vegetation and ovules of water lilies. They will also consume snails, worms, small crabs, fish, mollusks, and seeds. The jacana competes with birds of a similar diet like the Sora. Predators of the jacana include snakes, caimans, snapping turtles and various large birds and mammals. The purple gallinule preys on jacana eggs and offspring. Jacanas commonly attack gallinules that enter their territory.The northern jacana is unusual among birds in having a polyandrous society. A female jacana lives in a territory that encompasses the territories of 1-4 males. A male forms a pair bond with a female who will kept other females out of his territory. Pair bonds between the female and her males remain throughout the year, even outside of breeding. These relationships last until a male or female is replaced. The female maintains bonds with her mates though copulations and producing clutches for them, as well as protecting their territories and defending the eggs from predators. Monogamous pairs are sometimes observed among polyandrous groups. The jacana has a simultaneous polyandrous mating system. That is the female will mate with several males a day or form pair bonds with more than one male at a time. Because of the high energy costs of producing eggs, females are replaced more often than males. If water levels remain constant, jacanas can breed year round.

Habitat

The northern jacana ranges Mexico to Panama, although they occasionally visit the southern United States. It mainly lives in coastal areas. Jacanas live on on floating vegetation in swamps, marshes, and ponds. They will feed on insects on the surface of vegetation and ovules of water lilies. They will also consume snails, worms, small crabs, fish, mollusks, and seeds. The jacana competes with birds of a similar diet like the Sora. Predators of the jacana include snakes, caimans, snapping turtles and various large birds and mammals. The purple gallinule preys on jacana eggs and offspring. Jacanas commonly attack gallinules that enter their territory.