Apple has slipped a nostalgic surprise into iOS 27, giving longtime Mac users another reason to explore the operating system beyond its headline features. The Easter egg is hidden inside the Liquid Glass appearance settings and brings back Clarus the Dogcow, one of the most recognizable characters from Apple’s early software history. The hidden character also appears in iPadOS 27.
How to Find Clarus the Dogcow in iOS 27
Unlike conventional features Apple announces, this Easter egg is tucked inside an everyday interface element. To find it:
- Open Settings.
- Tap Appearance.
- Select Liquid Glass.
- Locate the demonstration window used to preview the appearance.
- Scroll through the demonstration area — keep going even after it seems to have reached its natural stopping point.
A search bar eventually appears, followed by the word ‘Moof!’ being entered automatically. Clarus the Dogcow then appears as the hidden Easter egg. The same discovery process applies to iPadOS 27. The key is to keep scrolling instead of stopping when the demonstration appears to have ended.
Clarus Dates Back to 1984
Clarus the Dogcow has a strong connection to Apple’s early design history. Susan Kare created the Dogcow glyph for the Cairo font on the original Macintosh in 1984. Over the years, Clarus became a sentimental mascot for Mac users and the Macintosh team.
Apple has used Clarus before as a nostalgic reference to its Macintosh heritage. The character has appeared in unexpected places, including an Apple Watch Hermès product about a year ago and the Page Setup window in macOS Ventura.
The inclusion in iOS 27 adds personality to Liquid Glass, the visual design language introduced across Apple’s operating systems. While the hidden Dogcow does not change how Liquid Glass works, it gives curious users a small reward for exploring the interface.
For longtime Apple fans, the Easter egg links today’s iPhone software to Apple’s early Macintosh era, carrying a character created decades ago into the company’s latest operating systems.
