A Dodo A dodo was a flightless bird endemic to the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius. Related to pigeons and doves, it stood about a meter tall, weighing about 20 kilograms, living on fruit, and nesting on the ground.

A Dodo The dodo has been extinct since the mid-to-late 17th century. The earliest known descriptions of the bird were made by Dutch travelers to what is now the island of Mauritius, east of Madagascar. The dodo was known by the name "walghvogel"

A Dodo The etymology of the word dodo is unclear. Some ascribe it to the Dutch word dodoor for "sluggard", but it more likely is related to dodaars ("knot-arse"), referring to the knot of feathers on the hind end. As with many animals that have evolved in isolation from significant predators, the dodo was entirely fearless of people, and this, in combination with its flightlessness, made it easy prey for humans. it is likely that the dodo became extinct before 1700; the last dodo died a little more than a century after the species' discovery in 1581.

A Dodo In October 2005, part of the Mare aux Songes, the most important site of dodo remains, was excavated by an international team of researchers. Many remains were found, including bones from birds of various stages of maturity,and several bones obviously belonging to the skeleton of one individual bird and preserved in natural position.

A Dodo These findings were made public in December 2005 in the Naturalis in Leiden. In June 2007, adventurers exploring a cave in Mauritius discovered the most complete and well-preserved dodo skeleton ever. It is interesting to know: We say “as dead as a dodo”, which means “finished”. This bird was also featured as a character in Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.