DODO. 



a> QUO himself, ho clunu to be lord of all Such a view of the 



I xil id. 



in 



creation u surely man philosophical than the crude ami profane idea 

 entertained br Buffuo and hu disciples, oue uf whom call* the dodo 

 ' un aiiB buarr*, 

 ' 



Buffuo 



rr*, dont toute* le* partial porUient le caractere 

 d'uns conception maoqueV He fancies that thin imperfeotiou was 

 the remit of the youthful impatience of the newly-formed volcanic 



i which care birth to the dodo, and implies that a steady old 

 onaUnent would hare produced a much bettor article." 



We now paw to the oooaideration of the place this apparently 

 bird ought to occupy in the lyitenu of classification of 



Piso, in hu edition of Bontius, pUoe* the Dodo immediately before 

 Ik* Cassowary ; and her* we may obaerre that the figure of Bontiiu 

 doss not appear to be identical with the picture which now hangs in 

 the British Museum. Though there is a general resemblance there 

 are particular difference* which go far to ahow, at all events, that the 

 figure of Bontius and that in the picture are different portraits. 



WUlughby's eighth chapter treaU of The greatest land-bird*, of 

 a perulisr kind by themselves, which by reason of the bulk of tlu-ir 

 bodies and the smallness of their wings cannot fly, but only walk.' 

 The Ostrich occupies the first aection of thia chapter, and the Dodo 

 the fourth and last, being immediately preceded by the Cassowary 

 or Emeu. Kay'* aection ' Area rostru rectioribus minusque hamatis 

 maiims), singulares et aui generis, ob corporum uioloin et alamm 

 ><iil*lm Tolandi impotea' contains the same birds as Willuffhl>y's 

 eighth chapter, namely, the Ostrich, the American Ostrich, the Emeu, 

 Erne, or Cassowary, and lastly the Dodo. 



Moehring, and after him Brisson, gives the bird under the name of 

 **> a position next to the Ostriches also. 



Buffon places it independently. 



in his but edition of the 'Systems Nature' (the 12th, 



1700), place* the bird at the head of hi* OaUiiur, the order imme- 

 diately sunroerting the Gratia, under the name of Didm ineptut, and 

 immediately before the genus Pan (Peacocks). The genus fitruthio 

 i* the last of his OraUa, and lUtta (American Ostrich) the last specie* 

 of Anrtie, *o that JXdtuimeptui itand* between StrtUMio RAca, Linn., 

 and Pan eritlalut (the Peacock). In a former edition Limueus had 

 noticed the bird under the name Sirulkio ctetUlatui. 



Latham in hi* synopsis (1782) followed Linnnus, but gave three 

 species: namely, the Hooded Dodo, the Solitary Dodo, sad the 

 N .. .-. [M 



Omelin, in his edition of the 'Systems Nature' (1789), makes 

 Pttfkia (Trumpeter) the but genus of the Limucau tiraUtr, and (Hit 

 (Buirtard) the first genus of the Linnsmn Galliiur, under which la.it- 

 luentioned order be arranges the genus I),<l*t, placing it between the 

 groera Stnttkio sod Pan, which are both included by Onn-liu in the 

 order Ifallima. He also gives three specie* 1st Didm itupttu, Iii. h 

 be describes a* " black, clouded with white, with tetradactyle feet" 

 The following are hi* synonym* : Dtdtu, ' Syst Nat' xii. 1, p. 207. 

 n. 1 ; .SrnuAio <<//<//, ' Syst Naf x. p. 155 ; Rapktu, Brias. 'Av.' 

 5, p. 14, n. 1 ; Cyyittu <-<///*, Nieremb. ' Nat' 231 ; Galltu yaiU- 

 WKMU ftnyrimmi, Clun ' Kxof 99, t 10; Olear. 'Mils.' S3, t 13, 

 1'ronte, Bont ' Jav.' 70; Buff. 'Hut Nat de* Oia.' L p. 480; 

 Dod-acrsen, or Valgh-Vugel, Herbert, it p. 382, t 383 ; Dodo, Raj. 

 Av.'p. 37, n.8; Will. -Oni.'p. Ii3, t 27; rilw. Milewi.' t. 294; 

 Hooded Dodo, Lath. 'Syn.' iii. 1, p. 1, t. 70. 2nd, IHdtu nlilaritu, 

 S.,luain-, Buff 'Hist Nat de* Oia.' L p. 485; Leguat, it L p. 98; 

 Soliury Dodo, Lath. Sy n.' iii. 1 . p . :i, u. i This specie* i* described 

 by Omelin a* " varied with gray and brown, with tetradactyle feet" 

 3rd, /*</KJ .\niarnoa, Oiaeau de Nazareth, et Oisnau de Nausoe, 

 Bolt 'Hi.t Nat de* Oia,' i. p. 486; Cauohe, 'Madag.' p. 130; 

 Naxarene Dodo, Lath. ' Syu iii. 1, p 4, n. 3. Omeliu describes this 

 speci** as - black, with tetradactyle feet" 



Blumsnbsch folknred Linnicu. ; and Dumsril and Vieillot followed 



Temminck instituted in bis 'Analyse du System* Genital d'dnn 

 Uwlogie' UM order /*** tor the Dodo and the Aftn-fje; two 1.,,-d-. 

 a* Mr. Yarr.II in hi* paper on the Aptay* ( Trans. ZooL Hoc.' voL L 

 P. 71) oUervm, dUbring decidedly from each other in their beaks; 

 but in refsreuc* to their imperfect winga, as also in the nature of their 

 external cowing, having obvious relation to the species included in 

 U* order Cfcrwn*. " But," adds Mr. Yarrell, " the situation chosen 

 tar this order Siwrfa, at the extreme end of his systematic arrange- 

 ment, beds me to infer that M. Temminck considered a* imaginary 

 the subject* far which it wa* formed." 



IlUger, in hi* ' Prodromal' (1811), instituted the order /wjrfi for 

 the reception of the Dodo alone, Apttrfs not being then known, and 



be placed it ImsnedUsriy preceding hi* Cunprt*, containing the 



..... . | . , 



Curier. in tb* first edition of hi* ' Kegn* Animal,' at the end of l.is 

 notice on hi* (amity Brrrifamm (Le* Autrnohes, 8frmOtio. Linn.), ha* 



the following note appended to hi* description of the last species, 

 ASM .-" 1 cannot tike* in this Ul.le .pecies but twlly known, or, 

 more, so little authentic a* thaw which comos* the genns l>,il<u. 



Tn*> Ant, or the Droate 

 tton given by the In* D 

 ' Blot' p. 99, and by an 



1 ; '' "" 



the genns . 



;Xiu), i* only known from a d-wrip- 

 vigators, and plumed l.y < 'lnm. 

 painting of the same pooh copied by 

 rbert is j-ucrile, and afl 



the other* are copied from Clusius and d-ards. It would aeeui 

 that the species ha* entirely disappeared, and we now posse** no 

 more of it at the present day than a foot preserved in the Briti.-h 

 Museum (Shaw, ' Nat MiacelL' pL 143), and a head in bad condition 

 in the Aahmolean Museum at Oxford. The bill doe* not seem to bo 

 without some relation to that of the Auk* (Piugouins), and tl. 

 would bear considerable resemblance to that of the Penguins (Mali 

 chots) if it were palmated. The second species, or the Solitaire 

 ( Didtu tolHaritu), re*t* only on the testimony of Leguat, ' Voy.' i. p. 98, 

 a man who ha* disfigured the beat known animal*, such an UK Hippo- 

 potamus and Lamantin. Finally, the third ipecies, or L'Oiwau de 

 Nazare (Didia A'aaaroHu), U only known through Francois Cauche, 

 who regard* it a* the same as the Dronte, and yet only gives it tlir- 

 toe*, while all other authors give Jour to the Dronte. No one haa 

 been able to aee any of these birds since these voyagers." Cuvier'n 

 opinion* subsequently underwent considerable modification. Win n 

 he was in this country he had au opportunity of seeing the head 

 preserved in the Aalunolean Museum, and the foot in the Hriti-li 

 Museum, and he doubted the identity of this species with that of 

 which the painting u preserved in the national collection, 

 mention* these doubts, and we must here recall to the reader the 

 geologist's statement above alluded to, that Cuvier showed him tbo 

 valuable remain* in Paria, and that he assured him that they U-t't n<> 

 doubt on his mind that the huge bird was one of the Gallinaceous 

 tribe, (' Sur quelques Ostemeiu,' 4c., ' Ann. dea ScL' tome xxt 

 p. 103, Sept 1830.) 



Shaw, as appears indeed from Cuvier's note, made mention of the 

 Dodo in hia ' Naturalist's Miscellany ' (plates 142 and 143), giving a 

 figure of the head preserved in the Aahmoleau Museum, and in his 

 ' Zoological Lectures.' 



Mr. Vigors in his paper ' On the Natural Affinities that connect the 

 Orders and Families of Birds ' (' Linn. Trans.' voL xiv.) thu 

 on the subject of the Dodo: "The bird in question, from i-vi TV 

 account which we have of its economy, and from the appearance of 

 its head and foot, u decidedly gallinaceous ; and, from the insufficiency 

 of its wings for the purposes of flight, it may with equal certainty l>c 

 pronounced to be of the Struthious structure, and referable to the 

 present family. But the foot has a strong hind toe, ami, with iv.- 

 exception of its being more robust, in which character it still mil. i < - 

 to the Strulhwnulit, it corresponds exactly with the foot of the 

 Linuxan genus CYor, that commences the succeeding family." 



M. Lesson, in his 'Manual' (1828), after giving a description of the 

 Dodo (genus lirontt, l>iiltu, Linn., Raphiu, Moehriug, Brisnou), says 

 that the genus includes but one species which may be considered iia 

 at all authenticated, and which exists no longer ; this is the Droute, 

 Hula* inrjttiu, described by Clusius, ex. p. 99, figured by K.I. 

 pi. l".'4. "They possess," he adds, "a foot and head of it at London, 

 figured in Shaw's 'MincelL' pi. 143 nad 166." Then comes the 

 following statement: "M. Temmiuck has adopted, after Shu 

 genus Apteryjc, which he thus describes." M. Lesson, after giving thu 

 description mi.l n.>ti. -iiiR the only known species, Aptcryjc A tufnriii, pm- 

 oeed* to make the following queries : " May not the Dronto be the 

 Cassowary of the East Indies, to which has been added the bill of au 

 Albatross .' It is said that it was once very common in the Isles of 

 France and of Bourbon, and that the former received the name of tli.- 

 Isle of Cerne from these birds. May not the Apteryx of M.Tennuiix k 

 be founded on the fragments of the Dronte preserved in the Museum 

 of London F" To make the confusion complete, M. Lesson , 

 immediately before the genus Dronte the Kmu Kirikiri, Ihtjn, 

 .Vur<e /dandiir, I..NW., which u no other than tin- 

 of .Shaw, and which has been so well described and figured )>y M r. 

 Yarrell in the first volume of the ' Traugactiouii of the Zoological 

 Society nf I. l.,n.' 



M. do UUiuvillo, in a memoir on the ' Didus ineptus,' read ' 

 the Acaili-iiiy of Sciences, on the 30th of August, 1830, and publi.-li. .1 

 in the ' Nouvelles Annales du Museum d'Histoire Naturclle' 

 iv. p. 1, 4to., Paris, 1835), enters at Urge into the history of the 

 bird. AfU-r K' V 'K tuu different points on which the claim of tlie 

 Dodo to be considered a gallinaceous bird rests, and the reasons fur 

 and against it he thus proceed* :" Among the orders of birds whirh 

 include the largest specie*, there only remain the birds of prey with 

 wlii li tl,- Dodo can be compared; and it seems to us that it is to 

 them that the bin) bears the greatest resemblance." In proof of this 

 it is necessary to attend to the following obaervuti,., 



1. The eye* are situated in the same part of the bill as in Ca'l' 



8. The nostrils are ovl, situated very forward, and without ., 

 nuporior scale, as in those bird-. 



3. The form of the nkull, iU great width in the intcrorbitary .-; 

 and its flatness at the sinciput, are also nearly the same ax in 

 vultures. 



n the Colour of the bill, and the two caruncular folds of tl, 

 origin of the curved part, are nearly the MUIIC as in those birds. 



',' >|H-cie of hood which the skin forms at the ruot of the bill, 

 ' -ti 1 which have earned for the Dodo the name of Cyynui ciKull<ilu, 

 ha* a very similar disposition in fniliniia. 



6. The almost entire nudity of the neck, as well as its greenish 

 colour M-cn through the few downy feathers which cover it, ore aluo 

 characteristic of th vul'.urc. 



