Kookaburras

"Kookaburra" in French is "un dacelo".

Aboriginals prepared kookaburra much like any other bird. Preparation was key both internally and externally. Roasting over an open fire was the typical method of cooking the kookaburra.

"Kookaburra" is the correct spelling.

Yes. This is where kookaburras are naturally found. Kookaburras are large kingfishers native to Australia, New Guinea and the Aru Islands, in southeastern Indonesia. They have also been introduced into New Zealand.

Kookaburras attract a mate by their call (not the raucous laughter which is used to mark their territory), and by flying above the treetops to attract the females' attention. The two will continue their courtship by flying around in pursuit of each other, and the courtship is complete when the male feeds the female prior to mating.

There are four species of kookaburra, all different in colour.

The most well-known species is the Laughing kookaburra. The largest of the kingfisher family, with a head-tail length of 45 cm, it has a white head (the female's head is yellowish - creamy coloured)with a dark brown stripe through the eye, while its back and wings are barred with brown stripes. The wings also have some distinctive light blue on them. Its tail tends to a more rufous colour, and has broad black bars.

The Blue-winged kookaburra is similar in appearance to the Laughing kookaburra, but it is distinctive for its vivid blue wings and darker blue tail.

The Spangled kookaburra has a white abdomen, and its wings and tail are brilliantly blue. Its head is strikingly mottled white and black.

The Rufous-bellied kookaburra is a very strikingly coloured bird. As suggested by its name, it has a rufous (reddish) abdomen and tail. It has a black back and a black cap, a white stripe which goes from the back of each eye and around e back of its head, and blue-tipped wings. Unlike other kookaburras, this species has a white bill, not a black one.

This is a complete myth.

The laugh of the kookaburra has nothing to do with weather patterns. The kookaburra's laugh is really a territorial call and a warning to others.

Kookaburras have many physiological adaptations which help them to live in the harsh Australian environment and climate.

One such adaptation is the Kookaburra's jaw and beak, which is quite strong. The bird will swoop down soundlessly from its perch and quickly grab prey with its strong beak. If the prey is too large to eat immediately, like a small snake or lizard, the kookaburra will use its strong beak to bang its prey against the tree branch until it is dead, and no longer going to wriggle away.

A kookaburra also uses its beak to make nests in tree hollows or termite mounds.

Kookaburras' colouring enables them to blend into the bushland in which they're mostly found. They are brown and white with dappled blue wings and, when still, resemble part of the branch on which they may be sitting.

The toes of a kookaburra's foot are stuck together in pairs. This helps the bird grasp branches firmly, giving it the ability to stay still for long periods while it awaits movement from its prey.

They eat fish only on Friday and call it fishy Friday

Despite the name, these tasty wings don't come from the wild birds also known as kookaburras. No, these wings are made the old fashioned way -- with good ol' American chickens.

The kookaburras is a type of kingfisher.

Interestingly, it does not live in jungles. Its natural habitat is dry bushland in Australia. The movies which include the kookaburra on their soundtrack are completely misleading the gullible public by using the sound of what is, to non-Australians, an exotic-sounding bird.

Yes, they do.

No, the Kookaburra is not endangered. And yes, it is a bird. To be more specific, it is a terrestrial kingfisher native to Australia and Papua New Guinea. It is an iconic mascot for Australia, and is probably best known for its eerily human-like "laughing" call.

Kookaburras are large kingfishers native to Australia, New Guinea and the Aru Islands, in southeastern Indonesia. They have also been introduced into New Zealand. There are four species: the Laughing kookaburra, Blue-winged kookaburra, Spangled kookaburra and Rufous-bellied kookaburra.

In Australia, where they are arguably best known, they can be found throughout the eastern states of Queensland (except for the far western, arid regions), New South Wales, Victoria and the eastern parts of South Australia. Although not found naturally in Tasmania, they have been introduced to Australia's island state, and also to the far south-west of Western Australia.

Kookaburras live in open and dense bushland, including rainforests. As they feed primarily on insects, worms, crustaceans, spiders, snakes, lizards and even small birds, they can live in any well-treed area where these creatures are abundant. Kookaburras are also a common sight and sound in suburban backyards in Australia.

Kookaburras nest in tree hollows or even in burrows dug in termite nests in trees. Females usually lay a clutch of three eggs, two days apart. It takes 24-29 days to incubate the eggs, depending on the species of kookaburra. Both parents take responsibility for raising the young, and they feed the chicks for thirty days; after this, the young birds remain with the parents, forming a family group which, together, defend their territory. In the case of the Laughing kookaburra and Blue-winged kookaburra, they defend their territory with a loud, raucous, laughing call.

Laughing Kookaburras have adapted to suit the harsh Australian environment and climate. One physical characteristic of adaptation is that a Kookaburra's jaw and beak is quite strong. It will swoop down soundlessly from its perch and quickly grab prey with its strong beak. If the prey is too large to eat immediately, like a small snake or lizard, the kookaburra will use its strong beak to bang its prey against the tree branch until it is dead, and no longer going to wriggle away.

The kookaburra is one of few Australian carnivorous birds that lives in bushland. It does not need to compete with the many honeyeaters or fructivorous birds which also live in the bush.

Kookaburras' colouring enables them to blend into the bushland in which they're mostly found. They are brown and white with dappled blue wings and, when still, resemble part of the branch on which they may be sitting.

The toes of a kookaburra's foot are stuck together in pairs. This helps the bird grasp branches firmly, giving it the ability to stay still for long periods while it awaits movement from its prey.

Yes. Whilst cockatoos are found in other continents, there are numerous species native to Australia. These include the sulphur-crested cockatoo, gang-gang cockatoo, cockatiel, yellow-tailed black cockatoo, red-tailed black cockatoo, galah and corella.

1. The kookaburra calls to locate other kookaburras.

They are all vertebrates and found in the region of Oceania, which includes Australia, New Zealand and New Guinea.

Yes. Kookaburras are birds and, like all birds, lay eggs in order to reproduce.

No. Kookaburras live in family groups. These family groups establish their own territory. Family groups may consist of a single mating pair, or a larger extended family group.

No. Kookaburras do not eat any vegetation. Kookaburras are carnivorous, feeding on invertebrates such as insects, spiders, worms, centipedes and crustaceans. They also eat vertebrates such as reptiles, fish, frogs and even small birds and mammals. Kookaburras have been observed catching a snake or lizard, carrying it up into the trees, and vigorously beating it on a branch or dropping it to kill it.

laughing kookaburra and blue-winged kookaburra

Kookaburras are large kingfishers native to Australia, New Guinea and the Aru Islands, in southeastern Indonesia. They have also been introduced into New Zealand.

In Australia, where they are arguably best known, they can be found throughout the eastern states of Queensland (except for the far western, arid regions), New South Wales, Victoria and the eastern parts of South Australia. Although not found naturally in Tasmania, they have been introduced to Australia's island state, and also to the far south-west of Western Australia.

Kookaburras live in open and dense bushland, including rainforests. As they feed primarily on insects, worms, crustaceans, spiders, snakes, lizards and even small birds, they can live in any well-treed area where these creatures are abundant. Kookaburras are also a common sight and sound in suburban backyards in Australia.

Kookaburras nest in tree hollows or even in burrows dug in termite nests in trees.

No. There are no kookaburras in South Africa. Kookaburras are native to Australia and the island of New Guinea.