In McDonald's branding history, which character was the first female mascot added to McDonaldland?

Birdie the Early Bird was the first female mascot added to McDonaldland.

McDonald's introduced Birdie in 1980 as a character associated with the chain's breakfast menu. Her name and design connected her to the early-morning daypart, helping the company give its expanding breakfast business a distinctive personality.

Birdie joined an established cast that already included Ronald McDonald, the Hamburglar, Grimace, and Mayor McCheese. She is sometimes confused with later McDonaldland characters or with generic bird imagery, but Birdie was a named mascot with a specific breakfast role.

Her addition shows how McDonald's branding used characters to organize menu categories as well as to entertain children. Breakfast was still a relatively newer part of the chain's identity, so a dedicated mascot helped make morning products memorable in television advertising and promotional materials.