Little bird

Little Birds are white birds with distinctive crests that are recurring ambient species in the Mario franchise ever since their debut appearance in Super Mario 3D Land. Occasionally, they even serve a gameplay purpose. Their appearance seems to be based off, a family of small passerine birds with similar body shapes and also notable for some species sporting crests. They are similar in behavior to other birds throughout the series, such as the Birds in Super Mario Sunshine, as well as the blue birds outside Princess Peach's Castle in Super Mario 64.

Super Mario 3D Land
Little Birds make their first appearance in Super Mario 3D Land, serving as ambient creatures and usually appearing in flocks. When Mario or Luigi approaches them, they fly away.

Super Mario 3D World
In Super Mario 3D World, Little Birds can also be found in various levels. In this game, they can occasionally appear in the title screen, where they fly away when the main cast of characters run through it.

Super Mario Odyssey
In Super Mario Odyssey, the Little Birds can be found in the Mushroom Kingdom and in the Cap Kingdom, the latter wearing top hats. If Mario falls asleep in an area where Little Birds can be found, one may rest on his nose.

Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games
In Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games, Little Birds appear during the first portion of the Mario Figure Skating Spectacular event, which is based on Super Mario 3D Land. As always, they fly away when the skaters come near.

Mario Kart 8 / Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
A flock of Little Birds appear on the road in the following tracks in Mario Kart 8 and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe: Mario Circuit, Wii Moo Moo Meadows,  GBA Mario Circuit. SNES Donut Plains 3, N64 Royal Raceway,  3DS Piranha Plant Slide,  GCN Yoshi Circuit, Hyrule Circuit and Dragon Driftway.

When racers approach them, they fly away, though after a set period of time without any racers, they return to the track. These birds are removed in the split-screen modes of the game.

Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
Players can interact with the Little Birds in Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker. Normally, they fly away when Captain Toad or Toadette approaches them, but if they stand by a Little Bird long enough, the Little Bird flies and lands on their heads, which is detailed in Episode 11 of the European The Cat Mario Show.

Mario Sports Superstars
 Little Birds are one of the objects encountered in the grass in the stable mode of Mario Sports Superstars'' sport, Horse Racing. When players pass into them, they fly away and reveal a ? crate, which reveals a Mario Token. When players obtain 20 Mario Tokens, they unlock the Mario Token Crown, a special horse accessory for the head.

Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle
In Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle, the Little Birds can be found in the Ancient Gardens. They behave like they do in Super Mario 3D Land and Super Mario 3D World, in which they fly away when the party members are near them, only to return soon after the party members leave the area.

Trivia

 * Despite being supposed to be species living in Mario's world, Hyrule Circuit in Mario Kart 8, which is rather set in Hyrule, features Little Birds as well. Due to being based primarily around The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, these may have intended to invoke Chirris, small birds from that game with a similar body shape, but colored plumage.