Dodo
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For other uses, see Dodo (disambiguation).
Dodo
Fossil range: Recent
Dodo reconstruction reflecting new research at Oxford University Museum of Natural History
Conservation status
Extinct (late 17th century) (IUCN)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Chordata
Class:
Aves
Order:
Columbiformes
Family:
Columbidae
Subfamily:
Raphinae
Genus:
Raphus
Brisson, 1760
Species:
R. cucullatus
Binomial name
Raphus cucullatus
(Linnaeus, 1758)
Former range (in red)
Synonyms
Struthio cucullatus Linnaeus, 1758
Didus ineptus Linnaeus 1766
The dodo (Raphus cucullatus) was a flightless bird endemic to the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius. Related to pigeons and doves, it stood about a metre (three feet) tall, lived on fruit and nested on the ground.
The dodo has been extinct since the mid-to-late 17th century.[1] It is commonly used as the archetype of an extinct species because its extinction occurred during recorded human history, and was directly attributable to human activity. The adjective phrase "as dead as a dodo" means undoubtedly and unquestionably dead. The verb phrase "to go the way of the dodo" means to become extinct or obsolete, to fall out of common usage or practice, or to become a thing of the past.