DODO

DODO

(Didus ineptus)

A large bird which used to inhabit Mauritius, but became extinct sometime after 1681.

It appears to have allied to the pigeons, was a little larger than a turkey, and incapable of flight. Our knowledge of the bird is derived from the reports of the travelers, from pictures, and above all from the skeletons dis-entombed in 1866.

It appears also to have been sometimes brought alive to Europe. The bill was large, longer than the head, and covered for half its length by naked soft skin. The end of the bill was hooked and turned downwards. The wings and the tail were rudimentary. The feathers seem to have been grey , with yellow on the wings and tail. The legs were short, thick, and scaly. It probably lived in the thick, tropical woods, and fed on vegetable materials.

The extermination seems to be have rapidly followed by the Dutch colonization of Mauritius. The bird was helpless and stupid, and withal good for eating. The hungry domestic animals brought by man doubtless helped to destroy the hapless dodo. Though a conspicuous example, the dodo is by no means the only bird which has exterminated, in part at least, by human carelessness. The solitaire of Rodriguez is another well known case.

(source:CE v4 35(A))