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
Kookaburra III during the 101 races of the defender selection series. The end of the selection round robins series found "Kookaburra III" the leading yacht, with 83 points, followed by "Australia IV" at 77 and "Kookaburra II" at 70. "Steak and Kidney" was eliminated on points halfway through the final round. With ongoing protests over the legality of "Australia IV"'s balloon jib, an agreement was reached in which "Australia IV" and "Kookaburra III" would race in a best of nine set. The winning syndicate could then use "Kookaburra II" as the defender yacht if they so chose. Keel modifications to "Kookaburra III"