David Quintero, age 14, of E1 Cajon, Calif., for his question:

WAS THERE EVER A DODO BIRD?

The dodo is an extinct bird. He was about the size of a large turkey. He had short legs and an enormous beak. He also had stubby wings but he could not fly. He did indeed exist.

An island in the Indian ocean named Mauritius was the home of the dodo. Two related species called the solitaires lived on nearby Reunion and Rodrigues islands.

And then all of a sudden the dodo was no more. European seamen killed the birds for food. Dogs, rats and hogs ate the eggs. And by 1681 there were no more dodos. By 1740 the solitaire was gone forever from Rodrigues and by 1790 he disappeared from Reunion.

A number of dodos and a few solitaires made it to Europe where they were exhibited and served as models for paintings. But now all we have are a few pictures.