Dodos smarter than previously thought new study suggests

You might have heard people describe the dodo as a clumsy bird that disappeared forever hundreds of years ago, however new research suggests that might not have been the case.

A new study has found that the famous animal was likely smarter and more interesting than people often give it credit for.

Scientists have discovered that the dodo's brain was a normal size for a bird of its size, when compared with other similar feathered species.

The findings also suggest the dodo may have been a bird that was active at night.

The discovery was made by a team of international researchers, led by the University of Lethbridge in Canada.

They used CT scans to look inside the skulls of dodos and compare them with other birds, including the dodo's closest relative, the extinct Rodrigues solitaire - the world's largest pigeon.

They found that the decision-making part of the brain matched what scientists would expect for a bird of that scale.

Dr. Andrew Iwaniuk, who was involved with the study, explained: "The dodo has the most unusual skull with a strangely domed head, but the part of its brain that determines cognition was exactly as big as what one would expect for a bird of its size."

This means the dodo was probably just as clever as pigeons - and pigeons are known to be surprisingly intelligent.

The findings also revealed clues that the dodo may have been better suited to seeing in darker conditions because its eyes and brain structure were similar to some birds that are active at night.

Lead author Sara Citron added: "We are quite confident that dodos were active at dawn, dusk, or night-time, which would make it the only nocturnal pigeon in the world.

"Perhaps this gave it an advantage over the many strictly day-active turtles that lived on Mauritius - at night-time, it may have been able to escape competition for food sources with other species, such as the island's many turtles," she said.