Dodos and Solitaires This classic Marginalia on the dodo's
disappearance was first published in 1954 Editors’ Note: The
renowned ecologist G. Evelyn Hutchinson was the first scholar to
pen Marginalia in American Scientist, beginning in 1942. This
entry is from his last year as Marginalist, 1954. The
controversy he describes has only been resolved within the past
decade, and we are not about to spoil the punch line before the
article. If, however, you visit the "other related links" box to
the bottom right of the page—after reading the Yale professor’s
analysis, please—you can find a selection of links to material
about the inevitable reach of genetic analysis to solve the
dilemma. The progress of Man in civilization, no less than his
numerical increase, continually extends the geographical domain
of Art by trenching on the territories of Nature, and hence the
Zoologist or Botanist of future ages will have a much narrower
field for his researches than that which we enjoy at present. It
is, therefore, the duty