Read Online 10 Gorilla Adventure by Willard Price - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Willard Price
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gobbles up the insects that annoy the rhino.
The tick-bird performs a similar service to the buffalo, picking out the ticks that have burrowed into the animal’s hide.
The crocodile bird fearlessly enters the open mouth of the crocodile to pick bits of food from between the teeth. Also it eats the leeches that infest the creature’s body. The crocodile is a bad-tempered reptile, but has a soft spot in its heart for this bird.
A small fish swims about among the arms of the sea anemone. Those arms are covered with stingers but the little fish is not stung, because it is the anemone’s good friend and assistant. It tempts big fish which rush in to take it, and are promptly stung and swallowed by the anemone.
There were dozens of other examples of symbiosis, all unknown to big Tieg.
With a noisy cher-cher-cher the little brown-bodied, white-tailed honey guide fluttered farther away and Tieg followed. The bird impatiently waited for him to catch up, fluttering and twittering constantly, then moving on.
Presently Tieg noticed that he was not the only one following the honey guide. The other was an animal about two and half feet long and a foot high with long sharp claws. This was the famous honey badger or ratel. He also loved honey. Honey badger and honey guide were glad to work together.
Tieg hurried. He must not let this animal beat him to the feast of honey.
The bird had now stopped going forward and was circling round and round a branch that cradled a large nest Tieg smacked his lips. This was going to be good. The tree was not hard to climb. He clambered up the trunk and out on the branch.
Bees are not fools. They saw him coming and prepared for battle. When he came within two feet of the nest they pounced upon him. They stung him on the neck and nose and cheeks and arms. Trying to beat them off, he lost his grip on the branch and fell.
He had the bad judgment to fall on the honey badger, which promptly bit him on the leg. This animal is a ferocious fighter and will take on an opponent a dozen times its own size. It proceeded to rip holes in Tieg’s clothes with its sharp claws. Tieg shook it off and ran.
He stopped when he found that the ratel was not following. Instead, the animal was climbing up to the bees’ nest.
Tieg felt as happy about it as if he had planned it that way. What could be better? The ratel would do the work and he, Tieg, would get the honey. It occurred to him that he was pretty smart, after all.
The bees swarmed around the ratel but their stings did not disturb him in the least. His tough hide was like a coat of armour. He clawed the nest from the branch and it fell to the ground. The bees still buzzed around the branch that had been their home.
This was easy picking. All that Tieg needed to do was to take the big honeycomb, treat himself, then carry all the rest to the village, give everybody a little of it, and allow everyone to think what a clever fellow he really was.
But the honey badger was clawing open the comb and eating the sweet contents. The bird fluttered about constantly, waiting its turn. Tieg also waited. His heart sank when he saw that the ratel was tearing the honeycomb to bits. There would be nothing much left to take to the village.
Finally the ratel stopped eating and looked up at the bird as if to say, ‘Now it’s your turn’. He ambled off, full of honey and quite content. He had left enough for his flying
friend.
The bird promptly sailed in to get its own dinner but was as promptly scared away by Tieg. What could he do now? He wasn’t going to eat after an animal. Besides, what was left, though satisfactory to a bird, was so crumbled and mixed with dirt that no man would want to eat it.
Tieg was angry. Angry with the honey badger, and angry with the honey bird which had led him here on a fool’s errand. Instead of allowing the bird to enjoy its dinner in peace, he fiercely ground every bit of honeycomb deep into the dirt, then, quite proud of himself,
The tick-bird performs a similar service to the buffalo, picking out the ticks that have burrowed into the animal’s hide.
The crocodile bird fearlessly enters the open mouth of the crocodile to pick bits of food from between the teeth. Also it eats the leeches that infest the creature’s body. The crocodile is a bad-tempered reptile, but has a soft spot in its heart for this bird.
A small fish swims about among the arms of the sea anemone. Those arms are covered with stingers but the little fish is not stung, because it is the anemone’s good friend and assistant. It tempts big fish which rush in to take it, and are promptly stung and swallowed by the anemone.
There were dozens of other examples of symbiosis, all unknown to big Tieg.
With a noisy cher-cher-cher the little brown-bodied, white-tailed honey guide fluttered farther away and Tieg followed. The bird impatiently waited for him to catch up, fluttering and twittering constantly, then moving on.
Presently Tieg noticed that he was not the only one following the honey guide. The other was an animal about two and half feet long and a foot high with long sharp claws. This was the famous honey badger or ratel. He also loved honey. Honey badger and honey guide were glad to work together.
Tieg hurried. He must not let this animal beat him to the feast of honey.
The bird had now stopped going forward and was circling round and round a branch that cradled a large nest Tieg smacked his lips. This was going to be good. The tree was not hard to climb. He clambered up the trunk and out on the branch.
Bees are not fools. They saw him coming and prepared for battle. When he came within two feet of the nest they pounced upon him. They stung him on the neck and nose and cheeks and arms. Trying to beat them off, he lost his grip on the branch and fell.
He had the bad judgment to fall on the honey badger, which promptly bit him on the leg. This animal is a ferocious fighter and will take on an opponent a dozen times its own size. It proceeded to rip holes in Tieg’s clothes with its sharp claws. Tieg shook it off and ran.
He stopped when he found that the ratel was not following. Instead, the animal was climbing up to the bees’ nest.
Tieg felt as happy about it as if he had planned it that way. What could be better? The ratel would do the work and he, Tieg, would get the honey. It occurred to him that he was pretty smart, after all.
The bees swarmed around the ratel but their stings did not disturb him in the least. His tough hide was like a coat of armour. He clawed the nest from the branch and it fell to the ground. The bees still buzzed around the branch that had been their home.
This was easy picking. All that Tieg needed to do was to take the big honeycomb, treat himself, then carry all the rest to the village, give everybody a little of it, and allow everyone to think what a clever fellow he really was.
But the honey badger was clawing open the comb and eating the sweet contents. The bird fluttered about constantly, waiting its turn. Tieg also waited. His heart sank when he saw that the ratel was tearing the honeycomb to bits. There would be nothing much left to take to the village.
Finally the ratel stopped eating and looked up at the bird as if to say, ‘Now it’s your turn’. He ambled off, full of honey and quite content. He had left enough for his flying
friend.
The bird promptly sailed in to get its own dinner but was as promptly scared away by Tieg. What could he do now? He wasn’t going to eat after an animal. Besides, what was left, though satisfactory to a bird, was so crumbled and mixed with dirt that no man would want to eat it.
Tieg was angry. Angry with the honey badger, and angry with the honey bird which had led him here on a fool’s errand. Instead of allowing the bird to enjoy its dinner in peace, he fiercely ground every bit of honeycomb deep into the dirt, then, quite proud of himself,
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