The little dodo birds goes by other names as well, including the tooth-billed pigeon, and in it’s native Samoa, the Manumea bird.
Although just 12 inches (31 cm) in length, the Manumea is, in fact, a relative of the famous “big” dodo bird, which lived on the Island of Mauritius until it was hunted to extinction some 400 years ago.
Unfortunately, extinction threatens the little dodo as well: A few hundred individuals remain on two Samoan islands, and they are disappearing at an alarming rate due to habitat loss and illegal hunting.
We’ve chosen the little dodo for inclusion on the Top 10 list because we think that saving this bird would be a fitting way to at least partially atone for the extinction of it’s larger cousin. Click here for more on the little dodo. The photo, of a captive little dodo, comes courtesy of Samoan Birds.
