Designed by Paul Smith 2006. This website is copyrighted by law.
Material contained herewith may not be used without the prior written permission of FAUNA Paraguay.
Photographs on this web-site were taken by Paul Smith, Hemme Batjes, Regis Nossent,
Alberto Esquivel, Arne Lesterhuis, José Luis Cartes, Rebecca Zarza and Hugo del Castillo and are used with their permission.
JACANIDAE - JACANAS
A single member of this Pantropical family of waterbirds, colloquially referred to as "Lily-trotters", occurs in Paraguay. A superficial resemblance to Gallinula in the family Rallidae is due to convergence and the species are not closely related. The most notable feature of the family are the long, thin legs and extraordinarily elongated toes and claws which act to spread the weight of the bird, allowing it to walk on floating vegetation. Tibia bare, and tarsus with long transverse plates on the front and rear. They possess a frontal shield and wattles on the long, straight, compressed bill, plus a horny spur at the bend of the wing. Tail is short and consists of 10 retrices. Sternum with two notches on the posterior edge. Flight is strong with legs extending well beyond the tail, over shorter distances it is more laboured and legs often dangle. Mating system is polyandrous, the male is left to care for the brood. Nests are placed on floating vegetation and chicks are precocial. Females are larger than males.
REFERENCES
Campbell B & Lack E 1985 - A Dictionary of Birds - T & AD Poyser.
Hayman P, Marchant J & Prater T 1986 - Shorebirds: An Identification Guide to the Waders of the World - Helm.
Johnsgard PA 1981 - The Plovers, Sandpipers and Snipes of the World - Nebraska University Press.
