The Myth of the Dodo (and Why We Might See Its “Cousin” Again)

The dodo is often held up as the ultimate symbol of extinction: the oblivious bird that waddled into human ships and vanished forever. There is a reason the term 'dodo' is still considered an insult today. The long-held belief is that the bird's stupidity was the cause of its being wiped from the Earth. But as the video above shows, the story is more nuanced (and more tragic) than that caricature suggests.

Rewriting the Dodo Narrative

• It wasn’t naïveté or stupidity that doomed the dodo. Rather, a cascade of ecological pressures like habitat destruction, introduced predators, and human exploitation all played key roles.

• Because the dodo evolved in the predator-free environment of Mauritius, it had no defenses against rats, pigs, monkeys, or even habitat clearing.

• Much of the blame laid on the dodo as a “foolish, clumsy bird” is more narrative convenience than biological reality.

In short, the dodo didn’t fail because it was inherently flawed, but because it was upended by forces it never evolved to confront. The history of the dodo is actually one about perseverance and adaptation, and a pretty amazing bird that lasted despite hardships. But eventually, it became too much, 

Colossal Biosciences & the Dream of De-extinction

Enter Colossal Biosciences. Their mission: to resurrect extinct species (or close analogues) using cutting-edge genetic tools. Among their ambitions is bringing back a bird with dodo-like traits within the next decade.

That raises big questions:

• Ethics & responsibility: If we can bring something back, should we? What obligations do we owe to revived beings and their ecosystems?

• Ecological context: Even if we resurrect an organism, its world has changed. Is there suitable habitat? Can it survive alongside introduced species and altered ecosystems?

• Story vs science: The dodo’s mythology is powerful, but the science must guide how (and whether) we act.

From Balcony Reflection

Standing on the balcony, I think about how the story of the dodo mirrors so many human narratives: the oversimplified villain, the cautionary tale, the “lesson” we think we’ve learned. But real life is messier.

We might be inching toward a dodo-like revival. If we do, we should carry with us more humility than hubris. We should remember that every creature has a story deeper than the one we tell it.