Dodo Birds
The dodo bird is a large, flightless bird, now
extinct. The Mauritius dodo once
inhabited the forests of the island of
Mauritius. About the size of a turkey,
the bird had a large hooked bill,
undeveloped wings and tail, and short, thick,
yellow legs. It laid a single,
large egg in a ground nest made of grass. The
dodo was first reported in 1598
by Dutch colonizers, who characterized it as a
sluggish bird unafraid of
humans. Dodos were last observed in 1681. The quick
extinction of the species
is attributed in part to domestic animals imported to
Mauritius by the
settlers; animals such as hogs escaped to the woods,
multiplied, and
destroyed many of the dodo eggs. The name dodo is derived from
the Portuguese
word duodo, meaning silly or stupid. In present-day usage the
word dodo is
applied to a simple-minded person unable to adjust to new
situations and
ideas.