Breeding
The Blue-winged Kookaburra is a cooperative breeder, a group being made up of a breeding pair and one or more helper birds who help raise the young. Breeding occurs once a year in late spring (September to December). The nest is a hollow high up in a tree, often 25 m (80 ft) or so above the ground. Three or four white slightly shiny eggs measuring 44 x 35 mm or a little larger are laid. The female incubates the eggs for around 26 days, and nestlings spend another 36 days in the nest before fledging. Chicks are born pink, blind and naked, and break their way out of the egg with an egg tooth on the bill. Feathers appear by seven days and their eyes open from the tenth day onwards. Kookaburra babies are often highly aggressive in the first week of life, and the youngest chick is often killed by the older chicks during this period. Once fledged, juvenile birds need to be taught how to hunt by their parents for a further 6–10 weeks before they can properly fend for themselves.
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