Why’s That Bird Laughing? Ask New Kookaburra At Cape May Zoo

What's so funny? Don't ask me, it's the laughing Kookaburra. Ask him what he's laughing about.

The Cape May Zoo is celebrating the arrival of a new kookaburra chick.

According to the zoo, the chick hatched in late May, but didn't fully fledge into its flight feathers until June 28.

This is the first chick in this set of Kookaburra parents at Cape May Zoo, and both parents take part in making sure it's well cared for.

Kookaburras have one of the best-known calls in the animal kingdom, a loud "kook-kook-kook-ka-ka-ka" often described as a raucous laugh.

The bird's calls can be heard over great distances, usually at dawn and dusk, earning them the name 'the bushman's alarm clock' in Australia.

You may have heard the call of the kookaburra used as sound effects in jungle movies over the years, and often portrayed as the sound of a group of monkeys.

Monkeys? Ha!

Don't make me laugh. Leave that to the laughing kookaburra to do.

The Laughing Kookaburras Are Australian

The Cape May Zoo posted some information about kokabuuras.

Kookaburras are native to Australia and are part of the kingfisher family.

They are predatory birds and maintain territories. Both parents participate in rearing the chicks, and young kookaburras will stick around to help their parents raise the next set of chicks.

They have a very distinctive song or call that parents must teach to the chicks after they fledge.

Young kookaburras look extremely similar to adults, but you can tell them apart by their smaller beak and tail feather sizes.

Spend the Day at the Cape May Zoo

Cape May Zoo, at 707 US-9 North, Cape May Court House, is one of the gems of South Jersey. Admission is free, and the zoo is open year-round.

The zoo is currently open from 10 am- 4:30 pm

See the kookaburras and more than 550 animals that call the Zoo home every day of the week.