Kookaburra

 by Liz Powley 4 comments

K

Kwik and kwirky tonight.

This be a kookaburra.

Kookaburra

This be an earworm to any and all Aussies (and, according to Wikipedia, a good percentage of the world at large).

‘Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree
Merry, merry, king of the bush is he.
Laugh, kookaburra, laugh, kookaburra,
Gay your life must be.’

And the schoolyard version:

‘Kookaburra sits on the electric wire,
Jumping up and down with his pants on fire.
Laugh, kookaburra, laugh, kookaburra,
Hot your tail must be.’

And yes, I had to look up the words – did you realise that there are actually at least two extra verses to each of these versions?

Konsidering that this is an art journal, I think I should probably inklude some art (though I did take that photo, it is from Belair National Park – he posed like that for ages and I have a pile of shots – I love my zoom lens). I hunted through my computer archives, and yes, I have drawn a kookaburra! Badly, but a kookaburra, nonetheless, from way back in November 1992 – I was nineteen and still living at home.

Kookaburra sketch

The kookaburra is an Australian predatory bird from the kingfisher family. Well known for its laughing call, which can be heard at dawn and dusk, it feeds on small snakes and lizards. This is a very familiar kall here in the foothills of Adelaide.

And that was the letter K, OK? 😀

Best wishes,
Liz

See all my Blogging A to Z posts!