Kookaburra (Laughing Kookaburra)
Dacelo novaeguineae
About the Kookaburra (Laughing Kookaburra)
Geographic Range:
Class: Aves
Order: Coraciiformes
Family: Halcyonidae
Genus: Dacelo
Species: novaeguineae
The kookaburra is a squat bird with a large head, short neck and medium-sized tail. Its bill is long, broad and somewhat flattened. The kookaburra’s coloring is predominantly white and brown; the male has a patch of blue-green feathers on the base of its tail. The bird is better known as the laughing kookaburra for its famous "kook-kook-kook-ka-ka-ka" call, which rises and falls in volume. During this call families within the kookaburra’s range will respond in chorus to the call.
The kookaburra is kept indoors throughout the fall and winter. Kookaburra do not have the insulating feathers and down that other birds have to keep them warm in the winter. Visit our Winter Visits page to learn more about the amazing animals you can still see during the winter.
You Can Find This Animal in the Windows to the Wild
Rise and Shine!
Kookaburras are also called the “bushman’s clock” because their loud calls are commonly heard very early in the morning just after sunset.
Hatch a kookaburra!
Visit our Kids' Corner for a kookaburra craft!
