Northern Jacana
Jacana spinosa
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Cordats)
- ClassAves (Aus)
- OrderCharadriiformes (Caradriformes)
- FamilyJacanidae (Jacanas)
- GenusJacana (New World Jacanas)
- SpeciesJacana spinosa (Northern Jacana)
The northern jacana or northern jaçana (Jacana spinosa) is a wader which is known as a resident breeder from coastal Mexico to western Panama, and on Cuba, Jamaica and Hispaniola in the Caribbean. It is sometimes known to breed in Texas, United States, and has also been recorded on several occasions as a vagrant in Arizona. The jacanas are a group of wetland birds, which are identifiable by their huge feet and claws, which enable them to walk on floating vegetation in the shallow lakes that are their preferred habitat. In Jamaica, this bird is also known as the 'Jesus bird', as it appears to walk on water. Wikipedia →
<5% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Jacana sighting in Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park, based on 32 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
Closest Relatives at Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park
Black-necked Stilt
Himantopus mexicanus
Royal Tern
Thalasseus maximus
Hudsonian Whimbrel
Numenius hudsonicus
Least Sandpiper
Calidris minutilla
Short-billed Dowitcher
Limnodromus griseus
Semipalmated Plover
Charadrius semipalmatus
Black-bellied Plover
Pluvialis squatarola
Southern Lapwing
Vanellus chilensis
Spotted Sandpiper
Actitis macularius
Killdeer
Charadrius vociferus
Solitary Sandpiper
Tringa solitaria
Lesser Yellowlegs
Tringa flavipes
📅 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 Northern Jacana in Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park?
About 0% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Jacana sighting in Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park, based on 32 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Northern Jacana in Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park?
November has the highest sighting rate for Northern Jacana in Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park in our monthly data.