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Nue's Real Name: Originally the name of a bird (White's thrush)
folklore (name origin: real bird)
Nue (鵺) 本名: Originally the name of a bird (White's thrush) (トラツグミ)
Answer: Nue (鵺) is a chimera of Japanese legend with a monkey's face, a tanuki's body, tiger legs and a snake tail. The name originally belonged to a real bird, the White's thrush (トラツグミ), whose eerie night call was feared.
Folklore label: the monster is legend; the bird is real.
In old Japan, the mournful night whistle of the White's thrush (Zoothera aurea, トラツグミ) was thought to be an evil omen, and the bird was called nue. Over time the name moved to a monster believed to make that sound.
The best-known story is in The Tale of the Heike (平家物語). A dark cloud and strange cry plagued the emperor's palace in Kyoto, and the warrior Minamoto no Yorimasa shot down the creature with an arrow. It had a monkey's face, a tanuki's body, a tiger's limbs and a snake for a tail.
Today "nue" is also used for something vague or hard to pin down, a 鵺のような person.
FAQ
What does a nue look like? A monkey's face, tanuki body, tiger limbs and a snake tail.
Who killed the nue in legend? Minamoto no Yorimasa, in The Tale of the Heike.