What the sources say
Laughing KookaburraDacelo novaeguineae
Every figure, record and mechanism on the Laughing Kookaburra profile was written from a source, and this is the working table behind it: 43 claims checked word for word against these sources. The left column is what the page says. The right column is the source's own words, copied, not paraphrased; a ... marks a cut and[brackets] an insertion. Open any source and check it yourself.
Profile updated
Source
01
San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance
Laughing Kookaburra. San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance.
- The page saysWorld's largest kingfisher
- The source says
the largest member of the kingfisher family and was once called the giant kingfisher
- The page saysthe bush's dawn alarm clock
- The source says
Known as the “bushman’s alarm clock” because it has a very loud call, a laughing kookaburra vocalizes in its family group at dawn and dusk.
Note: tagline generalizes 'bushman's' to 'the bush's' for modern voice; same fact. - The page saysa snake-smashing hunter
- The source says
killing a snake up to 3 feet (1 meter) long by grabbing it behind the head and smacking it on the ground
- The page saysWoodland, open and dry forest, parks, and gardens across eastern Australia, with introduced populations in Tasmania, southwestern Australia, and New Zealand
- The source says
native to woodlands and open forests in Australia ... The bird prefers dry forests with streams but is also commonly found in backyards, parks, and gardens. ... in 1897 it was introduced into the southwest corner of the continent and in 1905 into Tasmania as well. Several attempts were made to import kookaburras into New Zealand, and a population became established around the city of Auckland.
Note: 'eastern Australia' and 'New Zealand' from australian-museum-laughing-kookaburra: 'Laughing Kookaburras are found throughout eastern Australia. They have been introduced to Tasmania, the extreme south-west of Western Australia, and New Zealand.' - The page saysA heavy, boat-shaped bill that grabs a snake behind the head and smashes it against a branch or the ground to kill it.
- The source says
The beak is heavy and boat-shaped. ... killing a snake up to 3 feet (1 meter) long by grabbing it behind the head and smacking it on the ground
- The page saysThe laughing kookaburra is the largest member of the kingfisher family and was once called the giant kingfisher
- The source says
the largest member of the kingfisher family and was once called the giant kingfisher
Note: corroborated by kookaburra-2004: 'Laughing Kookaburras are the largest kingfishers in the world.' - The page saysIt stands 39 to 42 centimetres tall
- The source says
Height: 15.4 to 16.5 inches (39 to 42 centimeters)
- The page saysweighs 196 to 465 grams, with females slightly heavier than males
- The source says
Weight: 6.9 to 16.4 ounces (196 to 465 grams); females slightly heavier than males
- The page saysIts lifespan is about 11 years, and up to 15 in zoos
- The source says
LIFE SPAN 11 years; up to 15 years in zoos
- The page saysIts range covers woodland, open and dry forest, parks, and gardens across eastern Australia
- The source says
native to woodlands and open forests in Australia ... The bird prefers dry forests with streams but is also commonly found in backyards, parks, and gardens.
Note: 'eastern Australia' from australian-museum-laughing-kookaburra: 'Laughing Kookaburras are found throughout eastern Australia.' - The page sayswith introduced populations in Tasmania, the far southwest of Western Australia, and around Auckland, New Zealand
- The source says
in 1897 it was introduced into the southwest corner of the continent and in 1905 into Tasmania as well. Several attempts were made to import kookaburras into New Zealand, and a population became established around the city of Auckland.
- The page saysthe laughing kookaburra rarely eats fish
- The source says
The laughing kookaburra, however, is plainly colored and rarely eats fish!
- The page saysthe bird sits motionless on a perch, keeping its head perfectly still even while its body sways with the branch below, and watches for prey to pass by
- The source says
a laughing kookaburra sits motionless on a perch and watches for prey to pass by. The bird can keep its head perfectly still while its body sways with the branch below.
- The page saysWhen it spots something, it swoops down, seizes the animal with its heavy, boat-shaped bill, and carries it back up to a perch
- The source says
When prey is sighted, the kookaburra swoops down, lands next to it, and grabs it with its bill. It carries the food back to a perch
Note: 'boat-shaped' bill description from the same page's physical description: 'The beak is heavy and boat-shaped.' - The page saysPrey gets beaten several times against the branch or the ground to kill and soften it, then swallowed whole, head first
- The source says
beats it several times against the branch to kill and soften the prey. The food is swallowed head first and whole.
Note: 'or the ground' corroborated by australian-museum-laughing-kookaburra: 'larger prey is killed by bashing it against the ground or tree branch.' - The page saysA kookaburra can kill a snake up to a metre long by grabbing it behind the head and smacking it against the ground.
- The source says
killing a snake up to 3 feet (1 meter) long by grabbing it behind the head and smacking it on the ground
- The page saysA breeding pair shares its year-round territory with four to five of its own grown offspring, who act as helpers
- The source says
A breeding pair establishes a year-round territory that is also used by four to five of its grown young, which serve as helpers.
- The page saysthey take turns incubating the eggs, keep the chicks warm, feed their younger siblings, and help defend the family's patch
- The source says
These helper do their share of incubating the eggs, keeping the chicks warm, feeding their young siblings, and defending their parents’ territory.
- The page saysChicks hatch blind and featherless but already carry a sharp hooked bill
- The source says
Laughing kookaburra chicks hatch out naked and with eyes sealed but have a very sharp hook at the end of the bill.
- The page saysthe first chick to hatch may turn on its younger siblings, biting and often killing them, especially if food is scarce
- The source says
The first chick in the nest to hatch may turn on its younger siblings, biting and often killing them, especially if food is scarce.
- The page saysHelpers move on at about four years old to establish territories of their own
- The source says
At about four years of age, the helpers leave to establish their own territories.
- The page saysNo. The call starts and ends with a low chuckle and has a shrieking 'laugh' in the middle, but it is a territorial song: the birds use it to advertise the patch they hold.
- The source says
It starts and ends with a low chuckle and has a shrieking "laugh" in the middle. The song is a way the birds advertise their territory.
- The page saysUp to about a metre (3 feet) long. Snakes are sometimes dropped from midair onto the ground to tenderise them, and parents often give small snakes to their chicks so the young birds can learn how to kill prey.
- The source says
killing a snake up to 3 feet (1 meter) long ... Snakes are sometimes dropped from midair onto the ground for tenderizing! The parent birds often give small snakes to their chicks so they can learn how to kill prey.
- The page saysYes. At about four years of age, helpers leave to establish their own territories. Helpers share incubation and feeding, and every member of the group develops a brood patch: a bare space on the breast with lots of blood vessels for warming the eggs.
- The source says
All members of the group develop brood patches (a bare space on the breast with lots of blood vessels for warming the eggs). ... At about four years of age, the helpers leave to establish their own territories.
Note: 'share incubation and feeding' from 'These helper do their share of incubating the eggs, keeping the chicks warm, feeding their young siblings' - The page saysa family chorus that starts and ends with a low chuckle and has a shrieking laugh in the middle
- The source says
It starts and ends with a low chuckle and has a shrieking "laugh" in the middle.
Note: vibe.reason, settled in #780: replaces 'unmistakable Australian swagger', which argued from geography
Source
02
Australian Museum
Laughing Kookaburra. Australian Museum.
- The page saysMostly insects, worms, and crustaceans, plus snakes, lizards, frogs, and rodents
- The source says
Laughing Kookaburras feed mostly on insects, worms and crustaceans, although small snakes, mammals, frogs and birds may also be eaten.
Note: 'lizards' and 'rodents' from adw-laughing-kookaburra: 'It feeds primarily on snakes, large lizards, worms, snails, insects, fresh water crayfish, frogs, small birds and rodents.' ADW's 'primarily' is overruled by the current Australian Museum 'mostly' list. - The page saysThe laughing kookaburra's cackling call is instantly recognisable
- The source says
The Laughing Kookaburra is instantly recognisable in both plumage and voice.
- The page saysit is not laughter. The cackle is a territorial call
- The source says
The Laughing Kookaburra is not really laughing when it makes its familiar call. The cackle of the Laughing Kookaburra is actually a territorial call to warn other birds to stay away.
- The page saysfamily groups sing it together at dawn and dusk to warn other birds to stay away
- The source says
The cackle of the Laughing Kookaburra is actually a territorial call to warn other birds to stay away.
Note: family-group dawn and dusk timing from sdz-laughing-kookaburra: 'a laughing kookaburra vocalizes in its family group at dawn and dusk' - The page saysMost of its diet is insects, worms, and crustaceans
- The source says
Laughing Kookaburras feed mostly on insects, worms and crustaceans
- The page saysLaughing kookaburras are believed to pair for life
- The source says
Laughing Kookaburras are believed to pair for life.
- The page saysreuse the same nest hole each year, a hollow in a tree or a burrow dug into an arboreal termite mound
- The source says
The nest is a bare chamber in a naturally occurring tree hollow or in a burrow excavated in an arboreal (tree-dwelling) termite mound.
Note: 'reuse ... each year' from sdz-laughing-kookaburra: 'use the same nest hole, found in a tree hole or arboreal termite nest, each year.' - The page saystags: insectivore
- The source says
Laughing Kookaburras feed mostly on insects, worms and crustaceans
Note: #780: kept over carnivore, whose definition is a diet centred on flesh with shearing teeth
Source
03
Baker 2004
Baker (2004). The Chorus Song of Cooperatively Breeding Laughing Kookaburras (Coraciiformes, Halcyonidae: Dacelo novaeguineae): Characterization and Comparison Among Groups. Ethology.
- The page saysEach group's chorus appears to carry its own signature
- The source says
These results suggest that there is group‐specific vocal signature information in the laugh chorus.
- The page saysa researcher who recorded the laugh-song choruses of eight different family groups in Western Australia
- The source says
I studied vocalizations of laughing kookaburras in Western Australia by sampling the laugh‐song choruses of eight different groups
- The page saysran the recordings through a statistical test that correctly matched 24 of 25 samples back to the group that produced them
- The source says
Linear discriminant analysis assigned 24 of the 25 samples to their correct groups.
Source
04
Legge 2000
Legge (2000). Helper contributions in the cooperatively breeding laughing kookaburra: feeding young is no laughing matter. Animal Behaviour.
- The page saysMore helpers do not mean more food for the nest
- The source says
additional helpers failed to increase overall provisioning
- The page saysas a family group grows, every bird, especially the helpers, actually cuts back its own feeding effort and delivers smaller prey items
- The source says
all group members, but especially helpers, reduced their feeding contributions as group size increased. Breeders and helpers reduced the size of prey delivered
- The page saysBreeding males brought the most food of anyone in the group
- The source says
Breeding males delivered the most food.
- The page saysfemale helpers brought the least
- The source says
Female helpers contributed the least food.
Source
05
CSIRO Publishing 2004
Kookaburra: King of the Bush. CSIRO Publishing, 2004.
- The page saysSibling rivalry in the nest can turn deadly.
- The source says
Whilst in the nest, chicks fight their siblings for dominance and food so aggressively that the smallest chick is often killed.
Source
06
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2024
Dacelo novaeguineae. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2024: e.T22683189A253968941.
- The page saysLeast Concern
- The source says
IUCN Red List category: Least Concern (LC). Dacelo novaeguineae (Hermann, 1783), IUCN taxon 22683189.
Source
07
Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan
Dacelo novaeguineae. Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.
- The page saysit also eats lizards, snakes, frogs, and rodents
- The source says
It feeds primarily on snakes, large lizards, worms, snails, insects, fresh water crayfish, frogs, small birds and rodents.
Note: snakes/frogs/rodents corroborated by sdz-laughing-kookaburra: 'laughing kookaburras eat more insects, reptiles, frogs, and rodents than fish.'
How the table was made: a writer drafted the profile from these sources and logged each claim with its quote, a reviewer with nothing but this table checked every sentence said no more than its quote, and a script confirmed each quote appears word for word in the source. The method is in the site'sAbout page.