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Scientists debunk long-held myth about the most famous animal extinction — turning Darwin’s theory on its head

Nypost · 🇮🇳 public India · · 558 words · By Ben Cost
Scientific Revisionism De-extinction Technology
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Scientists debunk long-held myth about the most famous animal extinction — turning Darwin’s theory on its head See more of our coverage in your search results.

Claims checked 9
Techniques found 1
Topics 2

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left0%
Center50%
Right50%

2 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Scientists debunk long-held myth about the most famous animal extinction — turning Darwin’s theory on its head See more of our coverage in your search results.

Why it matters

Add The New York Post on Google They weren’t the bird brain they were billed as.

Common ground

Once seen as synonymous with stupidity, the dodo bird was actually not as dumb as depicted — and could’ve been as smart as a modern pigeon.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://nypost.com/2026/08/07/science/the-dodo-wasnt-such-a-bird-brain-after-all…

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 1 propaganda technique in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning
Loaded Language 80% confidence
Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.
Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.
Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 9 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 6
verified Verified By Reference 2
info Single Source 1
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Claim 1: “Professor Vera Weisbecker, from Flinders University in Adelaide, Australia, wrote in The Conversation”
CORROBORATED
Web search results confirm Professor Vera Weisbecker is from Flinders University and has written/spoken about this research, with one source specifically mentioning her writing in 'The Conversation'.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Koala conservation organisations, programs and government legislation are concerned with the declining population of koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus), a well-known Australian marsupial found in gum tre…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koala_conservation
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web search NEUTRAL — Vera Weisbecker and Aubrey Keirnan with pigeon skulls (A Keirnan/Flinders University). If correct, that would make the dodo the only pigeon known to have lived by night, out of more than 300 species.
https://nz.news.yahoo.com/dodo-actually-smart-trust-humans-1…
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web search NEUTRAL — CT Scan Analysis Reveals Pigeon-Like Intelligence. According to Professor Vera Weisbecker of Flinders University, writing in The Conversation, the research team set out to examine the cognitive capaci…
https://www.archynewsy.com/new-study-reveals-dodo-birds-were…
+ 1 more evidence source
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Claim 2: “Their brain did differ from other pigeons in that their optic lobes — the region responsible for initially processing visual data — were smaller than their statuette-sized brethren.”
CORROBORATED
The claim is directly corroborated by a cross-reference from 'The Conversation' stating the optic lobes were unusually small compared to pigeons and the Rodrigues solitaire.
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web search NEUTRAL — In November 2021, it was announced that Envy Gaming would acquire the OpTic Gaming brand as part of a merger. OpTic Gaming leader Hector “HECZ” Rodriguez joined the combined companies’ ownership group…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OpTic_Gaming
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web search NEUTRAL — Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behaviour, manipulation, and detection of electromagnetic radiation, including its interactions with matter and instruments that use or detect it. [1] …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Optics
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web search NEUTRAL — Home of the #Greenwall - OpTic is an Esports competitive and content power-house. They started their reign in Call of Duty but have since grown into Halo hold Championships in multiple other titles.
https://opticgaming.com/
+ 1 more evidence source
info
Claim 3: “This ground-hugging pigeon relative was reportedly wiped out by Dutch sailors — who they were completely unafraid of — via both hunting and predation by the dogs, cats, pigs and rats the interlopers brought with them.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The provided evidence for this specific claim consists of irrelevant search results about Windows 11 taskbar colors. No evidence was provided to verify or debunk the claim about Dutch sailors and invasive species in the 'Evidence gathered' section.
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web search NEUTRAL — Feb 20, 2026 · Want to give your Windows setup a pop of color? The taskbar (located at the bottom of the screen) is very customizable—and, in this handy guide, we’ll show you how to adjust the color o…
https://www.wikihow.com/Change-Taskbar-Color-Windows-11
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web search NEUTRAL — Apr 27, 2026 · There are three ways to do it: pick a colour from a preset grid, enter a custom hex code for an exact shade, or let Windows automatically match the colour to your wallpaper. All three a…
https://www.digitalcitizen.life/how-to-change-the-taskbar-co…
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web search NEUTRAL — Nov 18, 2023 · Personalizing Windows 11 by adding color to the taskbar is easy and can make you feel more at home on your PC. You can change the color of your taskbar by accessing the Settings app, se…
https://www.howtogeek.com/799594/how-to-change-the-taskbar-c…
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Claim 4: “the team of international researchers conducted high-resolution CT scans of perfectly preserved dodo skulls, of which there are only three in the world.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources explicitly state that there are only three completely preserved dodo skulls in existence used for the CT scans.
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web search NEUTRAL — There are only three completely preserved dodo skulls in existence.Comparing the skulls and brain shapes of the dodo, the solitaire and the Nicobar pigeon shows the optic lobe of the dodo is much smal…
https://theconversation.com/dodos-probably-werent-as-stupid-…
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web search NEUTRAL — Currently, there are only three completely preserved dodo skulls. In an unprecedented study, published recently in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, researchers conducted advanced CT scan…
https://gizmodo.com/for-centuries-we-thought-dodos-were-stup…
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web search NEUTRAL — A CT scan of a dodo skull, with the brain visible in pink. Scientists found the region linked to higher thinking was exactly the size expected for a pigeon of the dodo's body size.
https://www.dailymail.com/sciencetech/article-16033159/dodo-…
verified
Claim 5: “which went extinct in the late 17th century, just decades after humans arrived on its home island of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia confirms the dodo was endemic to Mauritius in the Indian Ocean and is extinct.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Mauritius is an island nation in the Indian Ocean. Mauritius may also refer to:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mauritius_(disambiguation)
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Air Mauritius is the flag carrier airline of Mauritius. The airline is headquartered in Port Louis, Mauritius, with its hub at Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_Mauritius
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Mauritius, officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island country in the Indian Ocean, located about 1,100 nautical miles (2,000 km; 1,300 mi) off the southeastern coast of Africa, east of Madagas…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mauritius
+ 3 more evidence sources
verified
Claim 6: “Texas firm Colossal Biosciences hatched live chicken chicks from an artificial egg for the first time this past spring”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
While Wikipedia confirms Colossal Biosciences is working on de-extinction (including the dodo), the provided evidence does not mention hatching chicken chicks from an artificial egg in the spring of 2024. The provided Wikipedia snippets discuss the company and the dire wolf project, but not this specific event.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Colossal Biosciences dire wolf project is a project by Colossal Biosciences with the goal of replicating the phenotype of the extinct dire wolf (Aenocyon dirus) by genetic engineering. As of 2025,…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colossal_Biosciences_dire_wolf…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The dire wolf (Aenocyon dirus ) is an extinct species of canine which was native to the Americas during the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene epochs (125,000–10,000 years ago). The species was name…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dire_wolf
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Colossal Biosciences Inc. is an American biotechnology and genetic engineering company working to de-extinct several extinct animals, including the woolly mammoth, the Tasmanian tiger, the dire wolf, …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colossal_Biosciences
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Claim 7: “the dodo bird was actually not as dumb as depicted — and could’ve been as smart as a modern pigeon”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent sources (Newsday, Live Science, and other web results) confirm that research suggests the dodo's intelligence was comparable to modern pigeons.
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web search NEUTRAL — Her study of the extinct bird suggests that the dodo, long regarded as being dumb, may actually have been as smart as modern pigeons.Pigeons are not only relatives of the dodo, they are smart enough t…
https://www.newsday.com/long-island/extinct-dodo-bird-may-ha…
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web search NEUTRAL — Extinct dodos weren't particularly dumb, new research finds. Their brain-to-body ratio was similar to that of today's pigeons.
https://www.livescience.com/53822-dodo-birds-were-smart.html
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web search NEUTRAL — Modern research reveals the dodo was far from the slow, stupid creature depicted in old illustrations. CT scans of its braincase show it had intelligence comparable to modern pigeons. These extinct bi…
https://specify.wiki.ac.mu/
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Claim 8: “The team found that the “dodo’s forebrain, linked to cognition and memory, was similar in proportion to other pigeons, when compared to the rest of the brain.””
CORROBORATED
The claim is directly corroborated by a cross-reference from 'The Conversation' and further supported by other web search results regarding the forebrain proportion.
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web search NEUTRAL — The team found that the dodo’s brain wasn’t as small for its size. In other words, there is no evidence to suggest that a dodo would be particularly less intelligent than other birds. The analysis als…
https://gizmodo.com/for-centuries-we-thought-dodos-were-stup…
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web search NEUTRAL — Scans of dodo skulls held in museum collections revealed the part of its brain governing cognition was exactly the size expected for a bird of its bulk, according to a study published in the Zoologica…
https://ca.news.yahoo.com/dodo-actually-smart-trust-humans-1…
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web search NEUTRAL — They also scanned the dodo’s closest relative, the equally extinct Rodrigues Solitaire, and compared both against skulls from eight species of living pigeons and doves. The specific result the team re…
https://scienceblog.com/b-scientists-have-reconstructed-the-…
+ 1 more evidence source
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Claim 9: “The flightless bird’s underrated intelligence was detailed in a study published in a zoological journal.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources explicitly state that the research was published in the 'Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society'.
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web search NEUTRAL — Once seen as synonymous with stupidity, the dodo bird was actually not as dumb as depicted — and could’ve been as smart as a modern pigeon. The flightless bird’s underrated intelligence was detailed i…
https://nypost.com/2026/08/07/science/the-dodo-wasnt-such-a-…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The dodo, an extinct bird whose name has entered popular culture as a symbol of stupidity, was probably fairly smart. That’s according to new research published February 23, 2016 in the Zoological Jou…
https://earthsky.org/earth/dodos-werent-so-dumb-after-all/
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web search NEUTRAL — Granted, it was the size of a turkey and completely flightless despite its wings. But a recent study published in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society shows that dodos weren’t as inept as the…
https://nautil.us/inside-the-not-so-dumb-head-of-the-dodo-bi…
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.