Page 62 - English Class 07

“You bet!” said Totabhai rudely, “We are not crazy to stay awake all the night”.

“Ah! But I have to,” replied Ullunath. “That is the only time I can hunt for food”.

“What do you mean?” asked Parakeet, just puzzled.

“Well, I prey on rats who scurry about at night,” replied Ullunath.
“Why don’t you eat mangoes instead of rats like the rest of us?” asked Kala.

“I prefer rats,” answered Ullunath.
scurry : run away fast
“Prefer rats to mangoes? Now, I am convinced you are crazy,” camouflage : disguise
declared Totabhai.

“Were you to live in a tree full of owls, they would find you pretty odd, too,” replied
Ullunath benignly.

“We are not odd,” bristled Parakeet, “We are far superior birds. Look at your dull
feathers and compare them with our lovely, bright ones.”

“My friend,” explained the owl patiently, “The feathers that you are so proud of are so
coloured to help you merge with the green leaves of branches you live on. I nest in the

hollow of the tree trunk. God coloured us according to our respective habitats so that we
may be camouflaged and not easily spotted by our enemies.”

It all made a lot of sense to Mithu, but the rest of the clan seemed unimpressed. “Now,”
continued Ullunath, “Since all of you are already awake, please allow me to hoot a while!”
saying this, he let out his low whistling call of “TOO ............. WHIT ............. TOO .............
WHOO!” and flew off.

The next morning, something happened that had made everybody so worried that they
forgot all about their new neighbour. Polly parrot was the first to raise the alarm. Many ripe

mangoes had fallen to the ground the previous evening. The birds were looking forward to

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