 For many years the dodo and the Rodrigues solitaire were placed in a family of their own , the Raphidae ( formerly Dididae ) , because their exact relationships with other pigeons were unresolved . Each was also placed in its own monotypic family ( Raphidae and Pezophapidae , respectively ) , as it was thought that they had evolved their similarities independently . Osteological and DNA analysis has since led to the dissolution of the family Raphidae , and the dodo and solitaire are now placed in their own subfamily , Raphinae , within the family Columbidae . 
