The Alicanto is a mythological nocturnal bird of the desert of Atacama, pertaining to Chilean mythology.[1][2]Legend says that the alicanto's wings shine at night with beautiful, metallic colors, and their eyes emit strange lights.[1] The color of the wings may indicate the type of ore it eats, golden if from a gold mine and silvery if from a silver mine.[1][2] Some descriptions also portray the color of the wings as copper-green.[1]
The bird runs on the ground and can't fly because of the weight of the ore it eats, this means that it runs faster if it hasn't eaten recently.[2] According to legend, a miner that follows an alicanto without being noticed by the bird can find rich mineral outcrops or treasures such as an entierro.[1][2] But if the Alicanto discovers that it's being followed it will turn off the shining of its wings, and scuttle away in the darkness of the night.[2] Also, if the miner is not of "good heart" the alicanto will guide the miner off a cliff.[1][2] Accordingly, the miner will not be able to see the cliff in time because of the "intensity of the darkness".[2] It is said that it was an alicanto that guided Juan Godoy to the rich silver outcrops of Chañarcillo on May 16, 1832,[1] sparking the Chilean silver rush.[3]
