Laughing kookaburra Laughing kookaburra The laughing kookaburra ("Dacelo novaeguineae") is a bird in the kingfisher subfamily Halcyoninae. It is a large robust kingfisher with a whitish head and a dark eye-stripe. The upperparts are mostly dark brown but there is a mottled light-blue patch on the wing coverts. The underparts are white and the tail is barred with rufous and black. The plumage of the male and female birds is similar. The territorial call is a distinctive laugh that is often delivered by several birds at the same time, and is widely used as a stock sound effect in situations that involve
Blue-winged kookaburra officially described by Nicholas Aylward Vigors and Thomas Horsfield in 1826, its specific name commemorating the British zoologist William Elford Leach. It is one of four members of the genus "Dacelo" which are commonly known as kookaburras. Alternative common names include barking or howling jackass, or Leach's kookaburra. The number of subspecies is unclear - with four recognised by most authorities, although others have proposed the three Australian subspecies gradually change across Australia and should be treated as one. The adult blue-winged kookaburra measures around in length and weighs 260 to 330 g. Compared to the related laughing kookaburra, it