The alicanto is a luminous bird from Chilean myth.
Appearance
Alicantos are large, golden birds with metallic feathers. Some say that the precious metals they eat make up the sheen of their plumage. Their eyes glow the same colour as their feathers, and they are bright enough that it is said that they do not cast a shadow. Occasionally they will have silver feathers.
Behaviour
Its diet is made up of gold and silver, so it is often seen in caves and mine shafts searching for food. It is said that seeing it brings good luck. Occasionally greedy miners will follow it at night in hopes of finding its food source, but if the alicanto notices that it is being followed, it will either dim its light or lead the miner off a cliff instead. Those that eat gold shine like the sun, while those that eat silver shine like the moon.
Alicanto cannot fly, for the metals they eat weigh them down too much. Instead, they run with their wings spread. A hungry Alicanto can run quickly, but one that has gorged itself can barely move at all.
In some accounts, they live in caves and they lay two eggs at a time. The shells are silver or gold depending on what the bird eats.