Blue-winged kookaburra Blue-winged kookaburra The blue-winged kookaburra ("Dacelo leachii") is a large species of kingfisher native to northern Australia and southern New Guinea. Measuring around , it is slightly smaller than the more familiar laughing kookaburra. It has cream-coloured upper- and underparts barred with brownish markings. It has blue wings and brown shoulders and blue rump. It is sexually dimorphic, with a blue tail in the male, and a rufous tail with blackish bars in the female. The blue-winged kookaburra was first collected by Sir Joseph Banks in 1770, but was initially overlooked and confused with the laughing kookaburra, and was finally
Kookaburra of the three mascots chosen for the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. The other mascots were Millie the Echidna and Syd the Platypus. In William Arden's 1969 book, "The Mystery of the Laughing Shadow", (one of 'The Three Investigators' series for young readers), the laughing kookaburra is integral to the plot. The children's television series "Splatalot!" includes an Australian character called "Kookaburra" (or "Kook"), whose costume includes decorative wings that recall the bird's plumage, and who is noted for his distinctive high-pitched laugh. The call of a kookaburra nicknamed "Jacko" was for many years used as the morning opening theme