Laughing Kookaburra

The Laughing Kookaburra is a large, heavy-bodied kingfisher native to eastern Australia, instantly recognizable both by its size and its loud, cackling call that sounds like human laughter.

It has a large head, a broad dark brown eye-stripe, whitish-cream underparts and head, and brown, mottled upperparts with dull blue patches on the wings. The thick, dagger-like bill is dark above and pale below. Unlike many kingfishers, it is not brightly colored and rarely hunts near water, instead favoring dry woodland.

Key field marks

• Large, stocky build with an oversized head and heavy black bill
• Cream-white head and underparts with a broad dark brown eye-stripe
• Brown, barred upperparts with patches of dull blue on the wing coverts
• Loud, cackling "laughing" call, often given in chorus at dawn and dusk

Similar species

• Blue-winged Kookaburra is very similar but has more extensive pale blue on the wings and tail, paler eyes, and a different, harsher call; ranges overlap only in parts of northern Australia
• No other Australian bird combines this size, shape, and laughing call, making adults straightforward to identify by voice alone

Habitat

Open eucalypt woodland, forest edges, farmland with scattered trees, and well-vegetated urban and suburban areas including parks and gardens.

Range

Native to eastern Australia from Cape York Peninsula south to Victoria and South Australia; introduced populations exist in southwestern Australia and Tasmania.

Migration

Non-migratory and highly sedentary; family groups defend permanent territories year-round.

Behavior

Lives in cooperative family groups that defend a territory together, with older offspring often helping parents raise later broods.

Voice

The famous "laughing" call is a loud, cackling series used to advertise and defend territory, often performed as a chorus by multiple family members at dawn and dusk.

Feeding

An opportunistic predator that watches from an exposed perch and drops onto prey on the ground, taking large insects, worms, small snakes and lizards, frogs, and small mammals; prey is often beaten against a branch before being swallowed.

Nesting and breeding

Nests in a tree hollow or an excavated tunnel in an arboreal termite mound; breeding pairs are often assisted by non-breeding helpers from previous broods in feeding and defending the young.