Birds
Laughing Kookaburra
Dacelo novaeguineae · also called kookaburra, laughing jackass, bushman's clock
The laughing kookaburra is the sound of the Australian bush at dawn — a rolling, cackling chorus that carries for hundreds of metres. It is a kingfisher, the largest in the world, but one that swapped fishing for hunting snakes and lizards on the ground.
Overview
Laughing kookaburras live in open forest, woodland, and farmland with scattered trees across eastern Australia, and introduced populations occupy the southwest of the continent, Tasmania, and parts of New Zealand. They adapt readily to parks, gardens, and picnic grounds, and are among the most familiar birds in suburban and rural Australia. Each family group — a breeding pair plus grown offspring — holds a territory year-round.
A kingfisher on land
Kookaburras belong to the tree kingfisher group, and the laughing kookaburra has taken that lifestyle to its extreme. Instead of plunge-diving for fish, it perches low, watches the ground, and drops onto prey: large insects, worms, skinks, snakes (including venomous ones), frogs, mice, and small birds. It kills and tenderises larger prey by beating it against a branch, then swallows it whole, later coughing up a pellet of the indigestible parts. It has a stout, dagger-like bill and a large head for the body.
The laugh
The cackling “laugh” is the group’s territorial call. It typically begins with one bird’s low warble and builds as the others join in a rising, echoing chorus, delivered mainly at dawn and dusk and answered by neighbouring groups across the landscape. Settlers nicknamed the kookaburra the “bushman’s clock” and the “laughing jackass” for it.
Family and nesting
Laughing kookaburras are cooperative breeders: young birds delay leaving home for one to several years and help raise their parents’ next broods, incubating, brooding, and feeding. The nest is a chamber in a tree hollow or an arboreal termite mound. Sibling competition is severe — the first chick to hatch is armed with a temporary bill hook and often kills the youngest of the brood — so a clutch of two or three usually fledges only one or two.
Status
The laughing kookaburra is Least Concern and common. It benefits from the patchwork of woodland, farmland, and gardens that people have created, and its main risks are the everyday hazards of that life: loss of large old trees with nesting hollows, vehicle strikes, secondary poisoning from rodenticides, and, in gardens, a diet made unhealthy by well-meaning people feeding them mince and sausages.
Laughing Kookaburra: common questions
Is the kookaburra really a kingfisher, and does it eat fish?
Yes, it is a true kingfisher — the largest species in the family — but it is a "tree kingfisher" adapted to hunting on dry land rather than diving for fish. It sits on a low perch, scans the ground, and drops onto insects, worms, lizards, snakes, frogs, mice, and even small birds and nestlings, carrying larger prey back to a branch and thrashing it against the wood to kill and soften it before swallowing it whole. It will take fish or yabbies if the opportunity arises, but this is a small part of the diet.
Why do kookaburras laugh?
The famous cackling call is a territorial announcement made by the whole family group, usually at first light and again at dusk, which is why early settlers called the bird the "bushman's clock." One bird starts with a low chuckle, others join in with rising, rolling "laughter," and neighbouring groups often answer, so the sound ripples across the bush. It tells other kookaburras that this patch of woodland is occupied and defended. Individual birds also make softer calls for closer communication.
How do kookaburras raise their young?
They are cooperative breeders. A dominant pair holds a territory year-round, and their offspring from previous years — sometimes several — stay on as "helpers," taking turns to incubate the eggs, brood the chicks, and bring food. The nest is a bare chamber dug into a tree hollow or, often, a termite mound. Competition among the chicks is brutal — the first to hatch has a hook on its bill and frequently kills its younger, smaller siblings in the first days, so a clutch of three often fledges only one or two.
Are kookaburras aggressive, and will they steal food?
They are bold around people and notorious for **stealing food from barbecues, picnic tables, and even hands and plates**, swooping in fast and silently to snatch a sausage or a piece of meat. During the breeding season they will also dive-bomb people and pets that come near the nest. Feeding kookaburras is discouraged — processed meat lacks the calcium and roughage they get from whole prey, and it makes the birds bolder and more of a nuisance.