 The traditional image of the dodo is of a very fat and clumsy bird , but this view may be exaggerated . The general opinion of scientists today is that many old European depictions were based on overfed captive birds or crudely stuffed specimens . It has also been suggested that the images might show dodos with puffed feathers , as part of display behaviour . The Dutch painter Roelant Savery was the most prolific and influential illustrator of the dodo , having made at least ten depictions , often showing it in the lower corners . A famous painting of his from 1626 , now called Edwards 's Dodo as it was once owned by the ornithologist George Edwards , has since become the standard image of a dodo . It is housed in the Natural History Museum , London . The image shows a particularly fat bird and is the source for many other dodo illustrations . 
