Before the arrival of the world’s most threatening super-predator to Mauritius, the dodo bird lived a fascinating life filled with bizarre behaviors unlike any other creature on earth. Then in 1598, humans arrived.
Mauritius was a small undisturbed island with lush greenery and a unique ecosystem that developed over millennia. Think of pre-17th century Mauritius as similar to one of the Galapagos Islands only in the Indian Ocean. Mauritius is due east of Madagascar. There are a handful of nearby islands, but for the most part, it is surrounded by thousands of miles of ocean in all directions.
The island’s isolation made it home to many unique species, including the notorious flightless dodo bird. The dodo had evolved to be perfectly adapted to survive Mauritius’s harsh conditions. But when humans arrived, The dodo could not adapt to the changes brought, and according to The Dodo by Charles River Editors, the last confirmed siting of a dodo came in 1662. However, some speculate that the dodo did not go fully extinct until the 1690s.
Although the dodo’s official extinction date is unknown, dodos went extinct fewer than 100 years after human contact. Unfortunately for the world, all that remains are fossils, drawings, and first-hand written observations to understand the amazing and bizarre creatures. Their behaviors can be pieced together by analyzing the data available, and some of it is quite strange.
The Behaviors that Stereotyped Dodos as Dumb
Let’s start here because dodos have a bad rap. In this day and age, when someone calls you a Dodo, they are calling you stupid. Although there is no irrefutable evidence to support the assertion that they were smarter or dumber than other birds of their relative size, they did have some questionable behaviors when confronted by humans that made them seem unintelligent.
In their defense, they were not used to having predators, and a bird that can’t fly has a lot of trouble escaping predators. According to The Dodo, Dodos did not have any natural predators on Mauritius. They were not the largest animals on the island, but the giant tortoises and giant skinks (lizards) native to Mauritius did not bother them.
To reiterate, Mauritius had been human free until about the 17th century, which meant dodos did not fear humans. Humans who wanted to hunt a dodo could walk up behind one and bludgeon it or shoot it in the head without the bird realizing there was a threat.
Another reason they were characterized as dumb was their behavior of running to the aid of a fellow dodo trapped by a human. Although honorable, it was suicidal. A dodo's main weapons were its nine-inch beak and four-toed talons. It packed a punch, but they stood on average one meter in height (three feet, three inches) and at 25-40 pounds fully grown so were no match for a human. When a species does not have a natural predator, and one is introduced, it commonly spells disaster. The giant tortoises and giant skinks also ended up going extinct.
But to be clear, dodos did not line up to be bludgeoned by humans. They lived deep in Mauritius's forests and marshes, but even away from view, dodos were not safe from humans. As early as their first arrival, humans introduced invasive species such as pigs and monkeys that competed with or became predators to the dodo.
As humans settled on Mauritius, they also began deforesting the dodo's natural habitat. The wood of ebony trees was valuable to the Portuguese and Dutch visitors, and the Dutch cleared lots of lands to set up plantations. The dodo was not alone. Of the 45 species of bird originally found in Mauritius, only 21 species have survived.
The Dodo Diet and a Strange Symbiosis
Dodos primarily ate plants, including fruit, berries, seeds, and bulbs, but on occasion ate fish or crabs, officially making them pescatarians. They would wade into shallow ponds and use their beaks to peck at the water catching their prey.
According to The Dodo, in the 1970s, a scientist discovered that the tambalacoque tree, also known as the dodo tree, was dwindling in number on Mauritius. Only 13 remained on the island, each estimated to be over 300 years old. Strangely enough, the new tambalacoque trees stopped appearing on the island once the dodos became extinct.
It had been observed that dodos ate the tambalacoque tree's peach-like fruit whole, large pit included. The pits are coated in a fibrous layer known as an endocarp. Scientists now theorize that the dodos' stomach acids would break down the endocarps of the seeds, a requirement for the trees to grow. Upon defecation, the seeds would be dispersed and grow into new tambalacoque trees. Dodos did not shy away from the pits, as they were observed regularly eating small pebbles to serve as gastroliths. Resting in their stomachs or gizzards, the pebbles would help them break down their food, accelerating their digestion.
The Amazing Adaptations to a Harsh Environment
According to The Dodo, whether on Mauritius was harsh and erratic. November to March is the rainy season on the island. Relentless rains soak the earth, and fierce winds rush through the island. To add to that, violent cyclones also are prevalent. The conditions lead to a scarcity of food during this time, which led dodos to alternate between fat and thin periods.
Dodos evolved to be flightless likely to help them combat the rough conditions. They did not need wings capable of flight to escape predators, and big wings would only be a hindrance during the severe rainy season. Dodos used their wings for balance and mating displays. Dodos may have been relatively fast runners because of the width of their legs.
Dodos would fluctuate in weight throughout the year. They would gain weight throughout the dry season, becoming their largest in August, which was the start of their mating season. Female dodo birds would lay only one egg in their lifetimes. The male and female dodo birds shared the responsibility of caring for the egg, and it would hatch after about a month and a half.
Dodo hatchlings reached maturity quickly. Depending on how close to the rainy season they were born, they would reach maturity within two to four months, maturing just in time to face the harshest conditions Mauritius had to offer.
Along with weight fluctuation, dodos also went through dramatic molting periods. Every year their feathers would be completely replaced. Dodos were seen, depending on the time of year, fully covered with feathers or lacking feathers, completely exposing their light, fluffy layer of down.
Final Thoughts
As more is discovered about the dodo, the "dumb" stereotype seems to have less validity. Their adaptations explain their behaviors in a harsh and isolated island environment absent of natural predators. Although their behaviors were bizarre to humans, that does not prove that the birds were stupid.
Although scientists and historical accounts reveal a lot about the extinct dodo bird's bizarre behaviors, the world will never know the whole story behind the dodo. Their downfall came at humanity's hands, but the prehistoric-looking flightless birds continue to captivate people and remain posthumously popular.
Dodos themselves went "the way of the dodo," but their legacy sure has not. They live on in popular culture and as the poster child for the world's extinction crisis.
Image Sources:
1. Dodo cast of head and foot — by Michael Romanov on Wikimedia Commons
2. Edwards' Dodo (the late 1620s)— by Roelant Savery on Wikimedia Commons
3. Oxford Dodo display — by BazzaDaRambler on Wikimedia Commons
