Gotta Laugh Thursday

Blue-winged Kookaburra

We had seen Laughing Kookaburras, but this was our first Blue-winged Kookaburra. Gorgeous.

I wouldn’t want to be a prey species—a lizard, fish, grasshopper, cicada, or snake—on the other end of that stare!

From a perch, these kookaburras dive to snag their prey typically from the ground or shallow water. Small prey are easily dispatched but larger items, like snakes, get bashed on the ground over and over until dead or close to it. Reptiles are swallowed head first—and if large, the tail may stick out of its beak for some time.

They follow brush fires to capture fleeing animals. Smart!

But what’s a kookaburra without the laugh? Here are two short videos: a fun one with a Blue-winged Kookaburra dueting with a woman, and one with the kookaburra looking around from a branch as other kookaburras laugh in the background. Enjoy!

Blue-winged Kookaburra Dacelo leachii

Kakadu National Park-Bardedjilidji Sandstone Walk, West Arnhem, NT, Australia

July 22, 2024