IT MAY have been dead for hundreds of years but Oxford’s Dodo is going on tour – from one end of Britain to the other.

The Dodo display from the Museum of Natural History set off yesterday and includes a cast of the museum’s dried Dodo head, which is the only remaining soft tissue material of the bird anywhere in the world.

Along with real Dodo foot bones they will travel from Land’s End to John O’Groats, visiting museums in cities such as Bristol, Derby and Glasgow.

The 3ft tall flightless Dodo, a native of Mauritius, was hunted by sailors and died out in the 1660s. It was reintroduced to popular culture with Alice in Wonderland, written by Oxford don Charles Dodgson, better known as Lewis Carroll.

Oxford’s Dodo model will be photographed with objects from each museum and gallery it visits and visitors will be invited to take part in a show and tell with staff from the local museums.

Museum director Professor Paul Smith said: “Getting out on the road seemed like a great way to talk about the huge breadth of collections that we have in the UK, in natural history and beyond.

“It’s a chance for people to meet the iconic Oxford Dodo, and for us to meet important objects in other museums.”