Aracuan Bird

The Aracuan Bird is a character created by The Walt Disney Company. The Aracuan, is also called the "Clown of the Jungle" and first appeared in the feature film "The Three Caballeros" (1945); though, despite his apparent on-screen popularity, strangely he did not appear in the comic book adaptation of that film. During the segment "Aves Raras" (or "rare birds") Donald Duck is watching a film about South American birds when the film's narrator introduces the Aracuan as "one of the most eccentric birds you have ever seen." The Aracuan proceeds to walk right out of the film along the projectors' light beam and into Donald's life. This crazy bird drives Donald nuts not only in this film, but again in the cartoon short "Clown of the Jungle" (1947), and then once more in the feature film "Melody Time" segment called "Blame it on the Samba" (1948) where he attempts to cheer up the "blue" (literally) Donald Duck and José Carioca. Like Panchito Pistoles and José Carioca, the Aracuan Bird is primarily known only from these three films in the USA. However, he has found some success in comics from Brazil where he is known as "Folião". More recently the Aracuan Bird has appeared in Mickey Mouse Works and Disney's House of Mouse. He causes hilarious practical jokes and dons various disguises (including posing as Donald Duck), and most of the gags are highly impossible. Often Donald is shown trying to take a photo of the bird, with it evading his efforts.

The crazy Aracuan, with its flaming red hair, hot pink face and fluorescent yellow feet, appears at first to be a completely fictional creation. However, there actually is a South American bird called the Araucuan (note the slightly different spelling). The araucuan is the local name for the eastern Brazilian sub-species of the Speckled Chachalaca ("Ortalis guttata"). Chachalacas are moderately large tree-dwelling birds that belong the Cracid family, which also includes guans and curassows. Cracids are related to other galliformes, such as turkeys, and also share some characteristics with megapodes (such as the Australian malleefowl and brush-turkey).

The very name "chachalaca" refers to the noisy call of the bird, well-known in Brazil. Around dawn, groups emit hoarse screams and "arapapiyas" that are similar to those produced by the Aracuan Bird in the Disney movie. However, the physical appearance of the bird is quite different, with a long tail, drab plumage and a much shorter beak.