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Dodo Skulls Shatter the Cliché of the Bird's Stupidity, Revealing New Clues About Its Behavior Before Extinction
Researchers say brain scans point to a lean, active dodo with enlarged smell regions and likely nocturnal habits.
- On Wednesday, August 5, 2026, researchers published a study in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society revealing that dodos likely possessed nocturnal habits and were not intellectually inferior to modern pigeons.
- For centuries, the dodo was depicted as a "fat, slow" bird that "almost willed itself into extinction," but these myths stemmed from their trusting behavior toward humans rather than a lack of intelligence.
- Using high-resolution CT scans, researchers identified enlarged olfactory bulbs for smell and smaller optic lobes, suggesting the dodo was active at night and possessed a keen sense of smell.
- Lead author Sara Citron, a PhD student at the University of Lethbridge, stated, "Calling them 'stupid' for being naive makes it sound like they deserved to go extinct, which is so unfair."
- Although researchers admitted these results remain "speculative," the study provides a stronger foundation for understanding how the dodo lived on Mauritius before its disappearance in the late 17th century.
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Dodo Had Surprisingly Keen Sense of Smell and Owl-Like Vision, New Study Reveals
New research led by University of Lethbridge scientists offers the most detailed look yet at how the dodo (Raphus cucullatus) -- the flightless bird driven to extinction by the 1600s -- actually perceived its world, suggesting the ‘stupid bird’ had a far more complex sensory life than its reputation implies. The post Dodo Had Surprisingly Keen Sense of Smell and Owl-Like Vision, New Study Reveals appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science News.
The Independent+2 Reposted by 2 other sources
Dodo was actually smart – but trust in humans led to its downfall
Dodos approached humans without alarm and gathered around distressed members of their own group, enabling hunters to kill large numbers quickly and earning a reputation as foolish birds, new study finds
·London, United Kingdom
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Total News Sources11
Leaning Left4Leaning Right1Center2Last UpdatedBias Distribution57% Left
Bias Distribution
- 57% of the sources lean Left
57% Left
L 57%
C 29%
14%
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