Australia Birds · January

Laughing Kookaburra

Dacelo novaeguineae

Australia’s famous ‘laughing’ kingfisher of the bush.

At a glance

HabitatOpen woodland, parks, suburban trees

DietInsects, small reptiles, rodents, nestlings

RangeEastern Australia; introduced in the west and Tasmania

Coloring poseperched on eucalyptus branch, bill open mid-call

Hear this bird

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Mating / display: No separately labeled courtship recording was found on primary sources for this species — use the general calls page.

Listen on Xeno-canto Wikipedia overview

How to know it

Large brown-and-white kingfisher
Dark eye-stripe, stout bill
Often perched conspicuously

Fun facts

Chorus laughs proclaim territory at dawn/dusk
Not a true ‘laugh’ of humor — it’s a territorial call
Nests in tree hollows

Companion page for the Birds Coloring Calendar series by R. J. D. B. Fact summaries are original educational text. Call playback via outbound links only. Not affiliated with Cornell Lab, Audubon, or Xeno-canto.

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