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1500s: The dodo – a symbol of extinction but who really knows the story of how these birds lived?
Dodo Destiny
What you need to know before your trail
Dodos may have become extinct but the story of how this came about and how they lived is a fascinating tale. It was an odd looking bird to many but it only lived on the island of Mauritius and until the Europeans arrived in 1598, life for the bird was easy and untroubled.
This is the story of man and beast. How one can destroy the other and how one small island can be the symbol of how one of the most famous symbol of extinction can now be a universal symbol of nature and animal preservation.
Travel Guide
Who knew where Dodos were from? They were in fact only native to the small island of Mauritius :
The island of Mauritius is one of those few tiny dots of land east of Madagascar, floating in the immensity of the Indian Ocean.”
Mauritius and its treasures
Tom Parker is a good guide to the island. An American by birth, he became fascinated with the island and visited it several times in order to explore and really get under the skin of the place. What a treasure trove of travel he came across – and as the guide, you feel honoured that he is showing you such a side to such an amazing place. The island is home to stories of slavery, migration camps and plantations, a thriving spice trade and markets.
The dodo
The first time the dodo is spotted by explorers:
“They found no humans but they did encounter huge humber of very odd-looking large flightless birds”
The dodo is just one symbol of the changes on this island. It’s a reminder to preserve the island’s wildlife and riches. Many animals left when people started to arrive and this shows how man can alter an environment for everyone and everything around him.
Where Next?
