Dodos weren’t stupid, and their skulls finally prove it
New scientific analysis of dodo bird skulls suggests the species was not unintelligent, as previously believed. Researchers used digital endocasts to study brain structure, revealing that the bird's sensory processing was well-adapted to its environment.
Why it matters
This research corrects a long-standing historical misconception and provides deeper insight into the evolutionary biology of extinct island species.
Analysis of dodo bird skulls has helped scientists understand how they observed and interacted with the world before their extinction.
Call someone a dodo and nobody asks what you mean. The bird showed little fear of the people who landed on the island of Mauritius, and folks have called it stupid ever since.
Island birds with no mammal predators often behave that way, and the dodo’s reputation for stupidity grew out of this. Researchers who mapped the space its brain once filled found no sign of a dull bird.
Vision is the strange part. The dodo’s main visual center is a fraction of the size it reaches in other pigeons, closer in proportion to an owl’s.
Whatever set this bird apart, it wasn’t brainpower. It was the mix of senses that it worked with.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in