Yes, meself, I expect the North American 'nya nya...' is the same idea. I was thinking of the tonal similarities as suggested by Donuel. And the 'coo-ee' can be in any words you like, but the tones or tune would be the same as 'cuckoo'.
I was very surprised to hear children in Abidjan doing the 'mler mler' tune to each other. They don't have any contact with Western influences, but the tune was exactly the same!
I wonder if there are any other little tonal human sounds used universally?