Laughing Kookaburra

The laughing kookaburra is a large, stocky kingfisher native to the forests and woodlands of eastern Australia, famous for its loud, distinctive call that resembles raucous, cackling laughter, often performed as a chorus by several family members at dawn and dusk to mark territory. It has a large head, a heavy, dagger-like bill and mostly brown-and-white plumage with a dark streak through the eye, and despite belonging to the kingfisher family it feeds mainly on land rather than water, hunting insects, small reptiles, rodents and occasionally small snakes, which it kills by beating them against a branch before swallowing. Laughing kookaburras live in cooperative family groups, with young from previous broods often remaining to help their parents raise and feed later chicks. The species is common and widespread across its native range and has become one of the most recognizable and beloved bird sounds of the Australian bush, frequently used as a stock sound effect for jungle scenes in films set anywhere in the world.