Extinct

Interview excerpt A sparkling green emerald in a turquoise sea, crowned by an azure sky and formed by volcanic rock, Mauritius is a small independent island nation of 787 square miles in the Indian Ocean with a population of 1.2 million people. It is known for its beaches, reefs, and tranquil sea. Jayshree Mungur-Medhi, an archaeologist and heritage expert on the island, participated in the excavations at Mare aux Songes, where a cache of dodo bones and other fossils were uncovered. MP: When did we first become aware of the existence of the dodo? JM: “Dumb as the dodo” is a saying which is famous worldwide, but actually the dodo only existed in Mauritius. Endemic to Mauritius, the dodo, Raphus