IT’S A JUNGLE DOWN THERE
I wonder where we are now
, thought Andrew Dubble. Andrew, no bigger than a beetle, poked his head above a feather on the bird’s back. A cold wind smacked his face as he peered at the earth far below.
“Wowzers schnauzers!” Andrew shouted. “I see green down there! It’s land! Now maybe this bird will take a break. She’s been flying over the ocean for
ages
!”
Another feather on the bird’s back twitched. A pile of frizzy dark hair popped up and went wild in the wind. It was Andrew’s thirteen-year-old cousin, Judy.
Judy shook her hair away from her face. “Fat chance, Bug-Brain,” she yelled above the wind. “This bird is an
arctic tern
! She’s on her way to Antarctica! Unless Uncle Al gets our messages, we’re penguin chow!”
Uncle Al was Andrew and Judy’s uncle, and he was also a super-smart, super-secret scientist.
meep …
“Unkie Al not call back yet,” came a squeaky voice from Andrew’s shirt pocket. It was Andrew’s little silver mini-robot and best friend, Thudd. “And penguin not eat bugs.”
“Oh, great,” groaned Judy. “So we’ll just turn into bug-sized ice cubes.”
The bird spread her wings wide and glided.
“She’s going lower,” said Andrew.
Now Andrew could see a wide, sandy beach and a forest beyond.
“Looks like a deserted island,” said Andrew.
“Noop! Noop! Noop!” said Thudd. “Australia! Continent!”
“Australia!” said Judy. “Cities!
People!
Someone could find us!”
As the bird glided lower still, Andrew saw driftwood and heaps of seaweed on the beach. But he didn’t see any people.
Now the bird was flying over the forest. It looked like a bumpy blanket of green. Here and there, tall trees poked through. A river zigzagged through the greenness like a silver snake.
The bird swooped down through the tree-tops and into the forest.
At first Andrew could hardly see in the dim light under the leaves. His eyes were used to the brightness of the open sky.
The air was alive with screeches and cries and cackles, chirps and whistles, and a sound like crazy laughter.
The bird dove under huge fan-shaped leaves.
“Look at this place!” Judy said. “Nothing but tangles of trees and vines! It’s a
jungle
!”
meep …
“Rain forest,” said Thudd. “Australian rain forest strange, strange, strange!
“Got plants and animals that not live any other place. Got most poisonous snakes in world! People found eighty-six thousand kindsa insects! Found ten thousand kindsa spiders!
“People always finding new kindsa plants and animals. Maybe Drewd and Oody find new stuff.”
“Neato mosquito!” said Andrew. “Maybe I’ll find a new kind of spider.”
“Eeeuw!” Judy groaned. “Ten thousand kinds of spiders are way too many!”
meep …
“Maybe Oody find new kinda plant,” said Thudd. “Rain forest got lotsa plants. Make lotsa oxygen for earth. Lotsa medicines come from rain-forest plants.”
Judy rolled her eyes. “We don’t need to find
plants
,” she said. “We need to find
people.
”
meep …
“Rain forest not got lotsa people,” said Thudd.
The bird slowed down. She settled herself on a branch midway up a tall tree.
The air felt warm and damp against Andrew’s skin.
Andrew sniffed in the jungle smells— green leaves, sweet flowers, and something musty, like a wet basement.
Andrew looked down to the floor of the rain forest way below. “We must be six stories above the ground,” he said. “But at least we’re on land again.”
“Let’s get off this bird chop-chop,” said Judy, “before she heads for penguin country.”
Andrew climbed down through the feathers on the tern’s back. He reached a long flight feather at the edge of a wing.
“Hmmmm …,” he pondered. “We can jump from this feather to the branch below.”
Just then, the bird swiveled her head.Andrew saw his reflection in a shiny black eye. “Um, I wonder what arctic terns eat,” he said.
meep …
“Eat little
I wonder where we are now
, thought Andrew Dubble. Andrew, no bigger than a beetle, poked his head above a feather on the bird’s back. A cold wind smacked his face as he peered at the earth far below.
“Wowzers schnauzers!” Andrew shouted. “I see green down there! It’s land! Now maybe this bird will take a break. She’s been flying over the ocean for
ages
!”
Another feather on the bird’s back twitched. A pile of frizzy dark hair popped up and went wild in the wind. It was Andrew’s thirteen-year-old cousin, Judy.
Judy shook her hair away from her face. “Fat chance, Bug-Brain,” she yelled above the wind. “This bird is an
arctic tern
! She’s on her way to Antarctica! Unless Uncle Al gets our messages, we’re penguin chow!”
Uncle Al was Andrew and Judy’s uncle, and he was also a super-smart, super-secret scientist.
meep …
“Unkie Al not call back yet,” came a squeaky voice from Andrew’s shirt pocket. It was Andrew’s little silver mini-robot and best friend, Thudd. “And penguin not eat bugs.”
“Oh, great,” groaned Judy. “So we’ll just turn into bug-sized ice cubes.”
The bird spread her wings wide and glided.
“She’s going lower,” said Andrew.
Now Andrew could see a wide, sandy beach and a forest beyond.
“Looks like a deserted island,” said Andrew.
“Noop! Noop! Noop!” said Thudd. “Australia! Continent!”
“Australia!” said Judy. “Cities!
People!
Someone could find us!”
As the bird glided lower still, Andrew saw driftwood and heaps of seaweed on the beach. But he didn’t see any people.
Now the bird was flying over the forest. It looked like a bumpy blanket of green. Here and there, tall trees poked through. A river zigzagged through the greenness like a silver snake.
The bird swooped down through the tree-tops and into the forest.
At first Andrew could hardly see in the dim light under the leaves. His eyes were used to the brightness of the open sky.
The air was alive with screeches and cries and cackles, chirps and whistles, and a sound like crazy laughter.
The bird dove under huge fan-shaped leaves.
“Look at this place!” Judy said. “Nothing but tangles of trees and vines! It’s a
jungle
!”
meep …
“Rain forest,” said Thudd. “Australian rain forest strange, strange, strange!
“Got plants and animals that not live any other place. Got most poisonous snakes in world! People found eighty-six thousand kindsa insects! Found ten thousand kindsa spiders!
“People always finding new kindsa plants and animals. Maybe Drewd and Oody find new stuff.”
“Neato mosquito!” said Andrew. “Maybe I’ll find a new kind of spider.”
“Eeeuw!” Judy groaned. “Ten thousand kinds of spiders are way too many!”
meep …
“Maybe Oody find new kinda plant,” said Thudd. “Rain forest got lotsa plants. Make lotsa oxygen for earth. Lotsa medicines come from rain-forest plants.”
Judy rolled her eyes. “We don’t need to find
plants
,” she said. “We need to find
people.
”
meep …
“Rain forest not got lotsa people,” said Thudd.
The bird slowed down. She settled herself on a branch midway up a tall tree.
The air felt warm and damp against Andrew’s skin.
Andrew sniffed in the jungle smells— green leaves, sweet flowers, and something musty, like a wet basement.
Andrew looked down to the floor of the rain forest way below. “We must be six stories above the ground,” he said. “But at least we’re on land again.”
“Let’s get off this bird chop-chop,” said Judy, “before she heads for penguin country.”
Andrew climbed down through the feathers on the tern’s back. He reached a long flight feather at the edge of a wing.
“Hmmmm …,” he pondered. “We can jump from this feather to the branch below.”
Just then, the bird swiveled her head.Andrew saw his reflection in a shiny black eye. “Um, I wonder what arctic terns eat,” he said.
meep …
“Eat little
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