Facts about Dodo: An Extinct Animal

Dodo is an extinct and flightless bird that was native to the island of Mauritius, which is in the east of Madgascar in the Indian Ocean. Dodo was approximately 3 feet tall and their weight was thirteen to twenty-three kgs. There were forty-five species of Dodo. The Dodo bird became extinct in the year 1681. Dodo nested on the ground. They became extinct not because of predators but because of hunting them. In the cave of Mauritius, the first complete skeleton of Dodo was found in 2007. Dodos had a blue-gray plumage and a big head, nine inches long. They also had stout yellow legs. Based on the analysis and size of the leg, Dodo was able to run very fast. Wybrand Van Warwick discovered the island of Mauritius and the bird Dodo in the year 1598 during an expedition to Indonesia. He was born in 1566 and died on 11th Jul 1615 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Dodo is a Portuguese word, coming from Doido. Doido in Portuguese means crazy or fool. The Dodos were existing from about 23.03 million years ago. Though the Dodos were considered fat and clumsy, it is also thought that they have well adapted for their ecosystem. Scientists have said that the Dodos ate nuts, seeds, bulbs, and roots. Wybrand Van Warwijck named the bird Dodo because he disliked the taste of the meat of it. The Dodo bird laid only one egg at a time as they had no natural enemies. Most birds lay multiple eggs as they think that at least one egg could hatch and also as they have their own natural enemies. The bird's closest relative was the Nicobar pigeon. But, the Nicobar pigeons are still alive and are found on the coastal regions and small islands from the Nicobar, east through the Malay Archipelago, to the Solomans and Palau. The Dodo is also called the Raphus cucullatus. Now, we cannot bring the Dodo back as once an animal has been extinct, then there is no way left to bringing it back. So, we should be good with animals and should not kill them.

- Utkarsh Garg

Class: 5

Sri Venkateshwar International School