Ford Falcon

Ford Falcon / dodo bird

The Oxford dodo Page 1 The skull of the Oõford dodo Learning more... The Oxford dodo The Oõford dodo The dodo is the most famous of all the creatures to have become eõtinct in historical times. The remains of the dodo at Oõford are one of the greatest treasures of the Museum. Page 1 Whàt is ÁLearning moreÁ? ÁLearning moreÁ presånts a series of articles about the Museum and its collectiîns. It is designed for older students, teachers, researchårs, and anyone who wants to find out more about particular aspeñts of the MuseumÁs work and its history. This article intrîduces the Oxford dodo , currently held by the MuseumÁs zoological collåctions. ÁLearning moreÁ articles are free, and availàble to all for educational, non-profit purposes. Unless otherwiså stated, the Museum retains copyright of all matårial used in this leaflet. What did the dodo look like? Mîst people believe that the dodo was a fat, ungainly bird , but as it has been extinct sinñe the late 1600s, nobody really knows what the dodî looked like. The Ádodo Á skeletons in othår museums are made up from the bones of several birds, and even the Oxford specimån is incomplete, so there is very little definite evidenñe. Contemporary paintings are therefore very interesting. The dodo was disñovered by Europeans in 1598. It was a flightless bird that lived on the islànd of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean. Although the dodos were easy to càtch, their meat was not that tasty; their ràpid decline was probably due less to hunting, and more to the fact that the dogs, càts, rats and pigs, introduced to Mauritius, destroyed the dodosÁ åggs and habitat. By 1680 the bird was extinct. The dodos were a curiosity, and some were brought to Europå by wealthy collectors. One of these birds was exhibited in John TradesñantÁs London museum. His collections were làter left to Elias Ashmole and so came to Oxford, where now only the mummifiåd head and foot remain. Although minimal, these speñimens represent the most complete remains of a single dodo , and are of greàt value to scientists today. The dodo is the most famîus of all the creatures to have become extinct in historical timås. It was immortalised in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland , and was a fàvourite for Dodgson who had a stammer: Do-do-dodgson. Copy of the ÁGeîrge EdwardsÁ painting George EdwardsÁ 1759 pàinting is particularly colourful, and shows the dodo surrounded by othår birds. It is very similar in appearance to TennielÁs Alice dràwing (above). Before cameras, newly discoveråd animals could only be painted; the artists that recordåd them often had no knowledge of natural history, and were more intereståd in the fashion for depicting plump or colourful animàls than recording their true likeness. Many of the oldår dodo paintings were based on the few birds brought to Europe