Kookaburras (pronounced /ˈkʊkəbʌrə/)[3][4] are terrestrialtree kingfishers of the genus Dacelo native to Australia and New Guinea, which grow to between 28 and 47 cm (11 and 19 in) in length and weigh around 300 g (11 oz). The name is a loanword from Wiradjuriguuguubarra, onomatopoeic of its call. The loud, distinctive call of the laughing kookaburra is widely used as a stock sound effect in situations that involve an Australian bush setting or tropical jungle, especially in older movies.
Cladogram based on the molecular analysis by Andersen and colleagues published in 2017.[2]
They are found in habitats ranging from humid forest to arid savannah, as well as in suburban areas with tall trees or near running water. Though they belong to the larger group known as "kingfishers", kookaburras are not closely associated with water.[5]
Taxonomyedit
The genus Dacelo was introduced by English zoologist William Elford Leach in 1815.[6] The type species is the laughing kookaburra.[1] The name Dacelo is an anagram of alcedo, the Latin word for a kingfisher.[7] A molecular study published in 2017 found that the genus Dacelo, as then defined, was paraphyletic. The shovel-billed kookaburra was previously classified in the monotypic genus Clytoceyx, but was reclassified into Dacelo based on phylogenetic evidence.[2]
Classification and speciesedit
Five species of kookaburra can be found in Australia, New Guinea, and the Aru Islands:[8]
The laughing and blue-winged species are direct competitors in the area where their ranges now overlap.[9] This suggests that these two species evolved in isolation, possibly during a period when Australia and New Guinea were more distant.[citation needed]
Kookaburras are sexually dimorphic. This is noticeable in the blue-winged and the rufous-bellied, where males have blue tails and females have reddish-brown tails.
Behaviouredit
Kookaburras are almost exclusively carnivorous, eating mice, snakes, insects, small reptiles, and the young of other birds. Unlike many other kingfishers, they rarely eat fish, although they have been known to take goldfish from garden ponds. In zoos, they are usually fed food suitable for birds of prey.
Although most birds will accept handouts and take meat from barbecues, feeding kookaburras ground beef or pet food is not advised, because they do not include enough calcium and roughage.[10]
They are territorial, except for the rufous-bellied, which often live with their young from the previous season.[11] They often sing as a chorus to mark their territory.[citation needed]
Conservationedit
All kookaburra species are listed as least concern. Australian law protects native birds, including kookaburras.[12]
In popular cultureedit
The distinctive sound of the laughing kookaburra's call resembles human laughter, is widely used in filmmaking and television productions, as well as certain Disney theme-park attractions, regardless of African, Asian, or South American jungle settings. Kookaburras have also appeared in several video games, including (Lineage II, Battletoads, and World of Warcraft). 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. Olly the Kookaburra was one of the three mascots chosen for the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. The other mascots were Millie the Echidna and Syd the Platypus. The call of a kookaburra nicknamed "Jacko" was for many years used as the morning opening theme by ABC radio stations, and for Radio Australia's overseas broadcasts.[13]
Bookedit
The opening theme from ABC was the basis for a children's book by Brooke Nicholls titled Jacko, the Broadcasting Kookaburra — His Life and Adventures.[14][13]
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.[15]
Filmedit
Heard in some of the early Johnny Weissmuller films, the first occurrence was in Tarzan and the Green Goddess (1938).[16]
Australian sports equipment company Kookaburra Sport is named after the bird.
Referencesedit
^ abPeters, James Lee, ed. (1945). Check-list of Birds of the World. Volume 5. Vol. 5. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. p. 189.
^ abAndersen, M.J.; McCullough, J.M.; Mauck III, W.M.; Smith, B.T.; Moyle, R.G. (2017). "A phylogeny of kingfishers reveals an Indomalayan origin and elevated rates of diversification on oceanic islands". Journal of Biogeography. 45 (2): 1–13. doi:10.1111/jbi.13139.
^Wells, John C. (2000). Longman Pronunciation Dictionary (2nd ed.). Longman. p. 423. ISBN 0-582-36467-1.
^Simpson, Ken (1989). Field guide to the birds of Australia: a book of identification. Christopher Helm. p. 317.
^Leach’s, William Elford (1815). The Zoological Miscellany; being descriptions of new, or interesting Animals. Vol. 2. London: B. McMillan for E. Nodder & Son. p. 125.
^Jobling, James A. (2010). The of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 130. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
^"Rollers, ground rollers, kingfishers – IOC World Bird List". www.worldbirdnames.org. Retrieved 2023-02-03.
^"Kookaburra, Dacelo sp. Factsheet (Bibliography)". San Diego Zoo. Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 23 Jan 2017.
^Giles, Jennie (1994). "Caring for Wild Birds in Captivity Series (Adelaide and Environs): Caring for Kookaburras" (PDF). Bird Care & Conservation Society South Australia Inc. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 May 2015. Retrieved 26 August 2015.