This is a cucco, a standard ‘chicken’ from the Legend of Zelda series.
In that series, they were used to find a variety of secrets.
There were even a few mini-games that featured them!

You can pick them up and throw them at enemies like standard items, but that won’t do a lot of damage. However, if you hold them in the air, it will flap franctically, slowing your descent!

But what you must do is never attack them.
I’m telling you, don’t do it!

When you deal enough damage to one, a swarm of cuccos flies in to attack! There’s no fighting back, so the best you can do is flee! There’s almost no way you’ll escape unharmed.
Pay special attention to the gold ones, though, as they are especially powerful!