Habitat It inhabits extensive fresh, brackish or alkaline wetlands (Brown et al. 1982, del Hoyo et al. 1992, Hockey et al. 2005) in open, semi-arid areas (Hancock et al. 1992) and savanna (Hockey et al. 2005), with relatively high abundances of fish (Brown et al. 1982) and with large trees nearby for nesting and roosting (Hancock et al. 1992) (although it avoids deeply forested areas (del Hoyo et al. 1992, Hancock et al. 1992)). Suitable habitats include shallow freshwater marshes (del Hoyo et al. 1992, Hancock et al. 1992), wet grasslands (del Hoyo et al. 1992), the margins of large or small rivers (del Hoyo et al. 1992, Hancock et al. 1992), lake shores (del Hoyo et al. 1992, Hancock et al. 1992, Hockey et al. 2005), pans (Hockey et al. 2005) and flood-plains (Hancock et al. 1992, Hockey et al. 2005). Across the range, Gula et al. (2019) found that suitable habitat area may have increased, indicating that factors other than habitat extent are causing the reduction in occupied area. There is uncertainty in the connection of available wetland habitat to population trends, but there does not appear to be a continuing decline in habitat quality.
Behaviour There is no evidence that this species undertakes any regular long-distance migration (Hancock et al. 1992), although it is not altogether sedentary (del Hoyo et al. 1992) as some populations make local nomadic movements to optimum foraging habitats (del Hoyo et al. 1992) during periods of drought or when large rivers are in flood (Hancock et al. 1992). Juveniles can move across larger areas (Gula et al. 2022b). Breeding starts late in the rains or in the dry season (del Hoyo et al. 1992), timed so that the young fledge at the height of the dry season when prey is concentrated and easier to obtain (Hancock et al. 1992). The species nests in solitary pairs and usually remains solitary when not breeding (del Hoyo et al. 1992, Hancock et al. 1992), although groups of dozens of individuals are not unheard of (Gula et al. 2022c).
Diet Its diet consists predominantly of fish 15-30 cm long (Hancock et al. 1992) up to 500 g in weight, as well as crabs, shrimps, frogs, reptiles, small mammals, young birds, molluscs and insects (del Hoyo et al. 1992) (e.g. large water beetles, termite alates (Hockey et al. 2005)).
Breeding site The nest is a large flat platform of sticks (del Hoyo et al. 1992) placed up to 20-30 m (Hancock et al. 1992) in a tree near water isolated from other trees and sources of disturbance (del Hoyo et al. 1992). It may also nest on cliffs (del Hoyo et al. 1992, Hancock et al. 1992) and in the abandoned nests of other bird species (Hancock et al. 1992).

The species occurs patchily in west Africa across the southern edge of the Sahel, seemingly now largely restricted to protected areas, while from Ethiopia and Sudan and South Sudan south to northern Botswana, south Mozambique and eastern South Africa it is more frequent (Gula et al. 2021). It occurs in Senegal (Saloum River Delta), The Gambia (though may not breed), Guinea-Bissau (Bijagós Islands, one nest recorded [J. Gula in litt. 2024) patchily in Cote d’Ivoire (Comoe National Park), Ghana (Mole National Park), Burkina Faso, Benin and Niger (a connected breeding population in Arli and W National Parks across the three countries), north Cameroon (Benoue, Bouba Ndjida and Waza National Parks) and southern Chad (Zakouma National Park) (Gula 2021). Recent records from Gabon are few and appear to relate to wandering individuals (Gula 2021). In Nigeria the only regular area of occurrence was Yankari National Park, but no more than three individuals have ever been recorded and none have been seen since 2015 (Gula 2021); it may be extinct if it has even been a regular breeding species in recent decades. It is now considered extinct as a breeding bird in both Togo (Dowsett-Lemaire and Dowsett 2019, Gula 2021) and Mali (Gula 2021).
It is common in the rift valley in Ethiopia, and although there is little information was previously common in suitable habitat in Sudan and was, at least previously, abundant in The Sudd in South Sudan (Gula 2021). It is a regularly encountered species in small numbers in wetlands in Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda (Akagera National Park), Burundi (although there is limited habitat), Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and in northern Botswana, southern Mozambique and eastern South Africa. It appears to be only an erratic visitor to Eswatini due to the lack of suitable habitat (Gula 2021). West to Angola the species is regular and may be frequent: recent information is limited but it still occurs north at least as far as Quiçama National Park near Luanda (eBird 2023). In Namibia there are scattered records from the centre but most are in the northeast: nationally there is little suitable habitat and apparently no recent breeding records (Gula 2021). The lack of access for ornithologists to much of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Republic of Congo in recent decades mean that the few records are difficult to interpret, but historically the species was reported to be common in at least some regions (Gula 2021, Gula et al. 2022a). 

A thorough investigation of records has been used to model the likely occupancy across the range at 3,071,098 km² (Gula et al. 2022a). While this value does not constitute an area of occupancy (AOO) as it was not scaled to a 2 km x 2 km grid, it does indicate that the true AOO greatly exceeds thresholds for listing as threatened. However, the recorded extinction as a breeding species from Togo, Mali and possibly Nigeria, plus inferred contraction of the range from peripheral areas (Eritrea, potentially Somalia) and apparent reduction in abundance in DR Congo and Republic of Congo allow the inference of a continuing decline in the AOO, although not the EOO (extent of occurrence).

Conservation actions in place
The species is not currently listed in the CITES Appendices. Previously it was included on Appendix III by Ghana from 1976 to 2007 (UNEP-WCMC 2007, Species+ 2024). Occurs in numerous protected areas across the large range, and efforts to restore and expand wetlands such as in the Waza-Logone Floodplain in Cameroon and Chad have occurred (Scholte 2006). A telemetry study investigated dispersal but was limited by drought leading to a lack of breeding (hence no juveniles to track) and by the difficulty of trapping the species (Gula et al. 2022b). Monitoring is currently very limited, with the species occurring at sites covered by the International Waterbird Census, but coverage of the population is poor due to the low density of the species and its movements in response to water conditions. Aerial surveys for mammals and large birds are the most effective monitoring approach for the species, but have only occurred regularly for the Okavango Delta in Botswana.

Conservation actions needed
Survey to estimate current population size in South Sudan, Ethiopia and Chad. Continue/restart surveys to assess population in the Okavango in Botswana. When feasible, survey areas of DR Congo and Central African Republic with previous records to determine current occurrence and status. Efforts are needed to understand the level of offtake for trade, sources of traded individuals and key markets.