Discovery and Early History
Heyndrick Dircksz Jolinck, a Dutch sailor under the command of Vice Admiral Wybrand van Warwijck was sent with a group of men to survey the island. Jolinck’s journal was the first written account of a dodo bird and marked the European discovery of the species, which was paired with the discovery of this island (Hume 2006).
Numerous ships would pass through Mauritius in the coming century with Europe's newfound foothold in the East. This led to continuing encounters with the dodo bird. Specimens were captured and also brought on journeys around the globe. Diplomatic relationships were being forged and exchanges of gifts and goods were commonplace. Living dodos had been exported to Europe, India, and Japan within the century, spreading interest about the species.
Yet, contact with Europeans was not fortuitous for the dodo, ultimately resulting in its extinction in the mid-to-late 17th C. Despite this, the dodo has lived on in studies of the natural world as well as in popular culture. While the knowledge of the dodo has shifted since its discovery, many details surrounding it still remain unevolved.
