EDMOND HARRY LUCY

LUCY
Aww! I can't find anything. We might have to keep her in our bedroom.

HARRY
So tell me kids, what do you both have planned for today? Woh Hey! Matilda, what are you doing inside the house?

EDMOND
We saw a fox near the hen-house and wanted to keep her safe.

LUCY
We're going to let her sleep in Edmond's bed.

HARRY
That's nice of you to think of Matilda, but I'm sure she prefers her hen-house.

EDMOND
What about the fox?

HARRY
Oh, you can be sure the fox will be back again.

LUCY
What?

EDMOND
What?

HARRY
Thankfully, Matilda has a friend who warns her when there are predators nearby. The jay!

HARRY
The Jay is also known as the Forest Sentinel because...

EDMOND
I know! Because when he senses danger, he make a loud squawking sound to warn everyone.

HARRY
Exactly. Thanks to the Jay, Matilda has time to get to cover.

LUCY
A-ha! Too bad, Mister Fox, you won't eat our little chickadee.

HARRY
No. He'll have to content himself with a small mouse, or a bird, or a few insects.

EDMOND
Oh, no. You mean the Jay can't save everyone?

HARRY
No, especially because the fox is a very clever animal. But there are other animals that are even more clever than him. They disguise themselves to stay protected.

LUCY
They disguise themselves?

HARRY
Yes, as you can clearly see on that page.

HARRY
Look at it closely.

EDMOND
I don't see anything.

LUCY
Go on, slide the button! Ohh! That's incredible!

HARRY
It's a stick insect. This insect obviously got its name because it looks so much like a stick.

LUCY
Ewww! Maybe each time I picked up a stick, I was picking up one of those icky insects.

HARRY
I don't think it's an icky insect, I find it rather beautiful.

EDMOND
Of course it is, because it looks like a stick, and sticks can be beautiful.

LUCY
Ewww!

HARRY
Another thing you should know is that they're perfectly harmless.

EDMOND
Oh! I can see this one hiding!

LUCY
Where is it? Show me! Wow!

HARRY
There's a mountain hare, also called the variable hare, who can change the color of his coat to hide in the snow. He can turn from brown to white.

EDMOND
That's amazing!

HARRY
But my favorite disguise is this one.

LUCY
A-ha! I found the big monster hiding in the leaves.

HARRY
No, that's not a monster, it's a butterfly!

LUCY
Wow!

EDMOND
Wow!

HARRY
The peacock butterfly looks like it has eyes drawn on its wings. This helps scare away the birds who think they see a predator, like a cat for example.

HARRY
So kids, did you understand everything we said today?

EDMOND
Yes! In order to hide from predators, some animals disguise themselves. They pretend to be a plant or a bigger animal to protect themselves. Maybe we should paint Harry's big eyes on Matilda's back. I'm sure the fox would be scared!

LUCY
Or we could cover up her feathers with leaves.

EDMOND
Or only let her out when it's snowing so no one can see her.

HARRY
Hmm... I don't think she likes that idea.

EDMOND


LUCY