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Dacelo novaeguineae

(Kookaburra, Laughing Kookaburra)

Overview

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The 'laugh' of the Kookaburra is one of the most enduring sounds of the Australian bush . Kookaburras are usually seen perched high in trees or on tall poles , watching for prey .

Common Names

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Click on the language to view common names.

Common Names in English:

Kookaburra, Laughing Kookaburra

Common Names in French:

Martin-Chasseur Géant

Common Names in German:

Jägerliest

Description

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Physical Description

Species Dacelo novaeguineae

Kookaburras, known as the Laughing Jackasses of Australia, are from the family Kingfishers. Similar to other kingfishers, Kookaburras have a stout and compact body, short neck, rather long and pointed bill and short legs .

Kookaburras are 17 inches in height , the upper parts dark brown, the wings spotted gray-blue. A white band separates the head from the body. There is a dark stripe through the eye, and the under parts are white. The strong bill is black.

Habitat

Ecology:
List of Habitats :1.5Forest - Subtropical/Tropical Dry

Biology

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Diet

The world's largest kingfisher eats very few fish. It feeds mainly on lizards, snakes , and insects. In the wild, Kookaburras are known to be partial to the young of other birds and snakes, as well as insects and small reptiles .

Reproduction

Kookaburras generally live in pairs or in small groups in open woodland. They incubate their two to four pure white eggs in hollow tree trunks , tree holes, or in excavated termite nests . Both adults incubate for a period of 25 days. The young leave the nest 30 days after hatching , but the parents continue to feed them for another 40 days.

Behavior

The Kookaburra's rolling, laughing call is one of the best-known sounds in the animal world. The birds raise a wild chorus of crazy laughter as they go to roost in the treetops at dusk, and again wake everyone within hearing just as dawn breaks , so regularly that in the hinterlands of Australia they are know as the "bushman's clock."

Australians value the Kookaburra, not only as an intriguing member of the strange fauna , but for its habit of feeding on snakes and lizards. The Kookaburra seizes snakes behind the head and kills them by dropping them from a height , or else carries them to a perch and batters them senseless with its big bill before swallowing them.

Less welcome is the Kookaburra's fondness for the young of other birds, and its occasional raids on farmyards for ducklings and baby chicks.

Its famous laugh is a territorial call , sung mostly at dawn and dusk.

Taxonomy

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Unambiguous Synonyms

  1. Dacelo novaeguineae (Hermann, 1783)

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name . Latest taxonomic scrutiny: 12-Jun-2005

Similar Species

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Members of the genus Dacelo

There are approximately 16 species in this genus:

D. gaudichaud (Rufous-Bellied Kookaburra) · D. gaudichaudi · D. gigas · D. leachii (Blue-Winged Kookaburra) · D. leachii cervina · D. leachii intermedia · D. leachii leachii · D. leachii occidentalis · D. leachii superflua · D. novaeguineae (Kookaburra) · D. novaeguineae minor · D. novaeguineae novaeguineae · D. pygmaeus · D. tyro (Spangled Kookaburra) · D. tyro archboldi · D. tyro tyro

Bibliography

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More Info

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Notes

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Contributors

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal February 29, 2008:

Identifiers

Last Revised: 2008-10-02