Laughing kookaburra

The laughing kookaburra, Dacelo novaeguineae, is the largest kingfisher, even heavier than the giant kingfisher. It is a stout bird 41 to 47 centimetres long with a big head, a long strong bill, a whitish head with a dark brown eye-stripe, dark brown upperparts, and a tail barred with rufous and black. Males and females look much alike, though the female is usually a little larger.

It is native to eastern mainland Australia and has been introduced to Tasmania, Western Australia and parts of New Zealand. It lives in dry eucalypt forest, woodland, parks and gardens. It stays in the same territory all year and keeps the same partner for life. The IUCN rates it Least Concern because it has a large range and population. Its famous laugh is often used as a jungle sound effect in films.

The famous laugh

The laugh is a territorial call that tells neighbouring groups where the border is. It can be heard at any time but mostly at dawn and dusk. One bird starts with a low hiccup, throws its head back, and others join in; if a rival family answers, everyone gathers and fills the bush with sound.

A special two-part voice box lets it make two pitches at once. The call is learned: parents teach fledglings, and the lessons last about two weeks. The old name was laughing jackass, recorded in 1798.

A helpful family

Pairs breed in unlined tree holes or holes dug into termite nests. The female lays about three white eggs at roughly two-day intervals, and both parents and helpers incubate them for 24 to 26 days. Up to five grown young from earlier years help defend the territory and feed the chicks.

The chicks fledge at 32 to 40 days. Chicks have a hook on the upper bill, and when food is short they may quarrel, and the smallest one can be killed by its siblings. When food is plentiful, parents spend more time brooding and the fighting does not happen.

A patient hunter

Like other kingfishers, the kookaburra perches on a branch or wire, waits for prey to pass, then swoops down and pounces. It eats mice, insects, earthworms, snails, small fish, lizards, frogs and small birds, and most famously snakes. It sometimes takes goldfish from garden ponds.

It occasionally catches large animals, including venomous snakes much longer than its body. The first scientific record was a 1776 account by Pierre Sonnerat, who wrongly said the bird came from New Guinea. That mistake is why the species name is novaeguineae.

On the globe

Look in southeastern Australian woodland; the card shows its big head and thick bill.