I have quite a lot of gum trees down the end of my backyard, past the billy goat’s gruff bridge which runs over the creek (o.k. so it’s a really a drain, but it’s not all concreted so it looks like a creek and that’s what I’m calling it).

In those gum trees live a pair of kookaburras. They do their big cackling call twice a day. Once when they’re going to bed…usually at about 7:15 – 7:30pm once the sun has gone down. That’s fine and dandy. I’m awake then and pleasant thoughts go through my head as I hear them like “Oh listen, there’s those beautiful Australian native birds, enchanting me with their distinctive, laughing bird call”. Sometimes I even say out loud, “There’s Kooky kookaburra”…but only if there are other people around. I’ve given them a cute and unoriginal nickname. (I don’t talk to myself you must understand. Well..rarely.)

However, the second time they feel the need to enchant the neighbourhood seems to be around 4am. Do they not realise that people are trying to sleep then? At that time of the morning, which is pitch black darkness, I hear them and think, “What is up with those blooming* kookaburras, waking me up with their annoyingly loud and long witch-like cackling. Can’t they just shut up until at least 6am?”

* sometimes I use other words apart from “blooming”. Other less lady-like words with which I will not disgrace the post

I’m clearly not at my most charitable towards native wildlife in the early hours of the morning.