
In fact, it is estimated by using a Weibull distribution method that the dodo may have persisted until 1690, almost 30 years after its presumed extinction date. Its last confirmed sighting was in 1662, although an escaped slave claimed to have seen the bird as recently as 1674. However, there is no evidence to support the idea that dodos were eaten to extinction. Why DODOS Actually Went EXTINCT | Island Biogeography 1Ģ5.0 similar questions has been found Did dodos taste good?ĭespite the popular belief that dodo meat was inedible because of its revolting taste,ĭodos were eaten by these early settlers, and even considered to be a delicacy by some Scientists Finally Know The Real Reason Dodo Birds Went Extinct

Scientists have been able to sequence the bird’s entire genome for the first time after years of analysing preserved DNA from the bird. The Dodo bird could be making a comeback hundreds of years after its extinction thanks to a DNA breakthrough. In fact, a new study from the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) suggests these extinct, flightless birds were likely as smart as modern pigeons, and had a better sense of smell. Are dodo birds dumb?ĭespite their centuries-long reputation of being stupid, dodo birds were actually fairly smart. Until recently, the last confirmed dodo sighting on its home island of Mauritius was made in 1662, but a 2003 estimate by David Roberts and Andrew Solow placed the extinction of the bird around 1690. We can’t state an exact date but it seems that the dodo only died-off at the end of 17th century. For around 300 years the world’s only preserved dodo remains have resided at Oxford University.

Today there is only one place you can see the face of a real dodo. It was driven to extinction in the late 1600’s after invasive species out-competed the bird for food and ate its young. The last Dodo bird died on the island of Mauritius (located about 1,200 miles off the southeast coast of Africa, in the Indian Ocean) over 300 years ago. The dodo’s closest genetic relative was the also-extinct Rodrigues solitaire. The dodo (Raphus cucullatus) is an extinct flightless bird that was endemic to the island of Mauritius, which is east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean.
