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Real dodo tree12/29/2023 ![]() This southern African coastal tree has fruits, similar to blackberries, that are delicacies for bats, monkeys and bush pigs. A relative of the tambalacoque in the same genus, Sideroxylon inerme, the white milkwood tree, attracts a wide variety of animals to feed on its flowers and fruits. Although now discredited as the sole agent of dispersal, the dodo’s relationship with this tree still continues to fascinate.Īnimal interactions with other members of the Sapotaceae family include some equally fascinating stories. Further research has shown that surviving tortoises are also likely to disperse the seeds of this tree, and more tambalacoque trees have been found, including some younger individuals. However, the story has a more positive postscript. ![]() This was a compelling and plausible story, and not surprisingly captured people’s attention. Put simply, the extinction of the dodo was preventing the tambalacoque from regenerating and the tree seemed doomed to go the same way. The extinction of the dodo in the 17th century, due to hunting by people, was linked by Temple to the absence of young trees. The idea was that the abrasion in the bird’s gizzard and the stomach acids would start to breakdown the seeds surface, allowing water to penetrate and triggering germination. Temple thought that before the tough seeds would germinate they must first pass through the digestive system of the dodo. Scientist Stanley Temple came up with the theory that the tree relied upon the dodo to complete its life cycle. The true age could not be determined because, like most tropical trees, tambalacoque has no growth rings. There were supposedly only 13 specimens left, all estimated to be about 300 years old. In the 1970s there was concern that the tambalacoque tree was on the brink of extinction. ![]() Early engraving of a dodo, the famous extinct flightless bird from Mauritius. ![]()
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