兒童英語讀物《神奇樹屋》 第二十冊 Dingoes at Dinnertime 04 Joey
"Oh, no!" cried Annie. "We have to save her!" Shetook off after the dogs.
Arf! Arf! Arf! Teddy barked over Jack's shoulder.
Jack ran after Annie with the book under his arm.
He ran over the dry, cracked ground, past scrubbybushes and scattered gum trees.
Jack kept his eye on Annie, running ahead of him.
He saw her stop suddenly.
She turned and dropped to her knees.
"What happened?" he shouted.
"Come look!" she said. Jack reached Annie. Besideher in the grass was the baby kangaroo. It wastrembling.
"Don't be scared," Annie was saying. Then shelooked at Jack. "Where's his mom? Why did she drophim?""I don't know," said Jack.
He put his pack on the ground and opened theAustralia book. Teddy jumped out of the pack.
The little dog tried to sniff the baby kangaroo.
"Don't scare him, Teddy," Annie said. Teddy satback and watched politely.
Jack opened the Australia book and found a pictureof a baby kangaroo. He read:
The biggest enemy of the kangaroo is the dingo, thewild dog of Australia. When a mother kangaroo ischased by dingoes, she may throw her joey out of her pouch. Without the extra weight in her pouch, shecan leap faster and farther. She then leads the dingoesaway from her baby. If she escapes the dingoes, shereturns to the joey.
"Oh, Jack," Annie said sadly. "I hope his motherescapes from the dingoes.""Me, too," said Jack.
"Hi, Joey," said Annie. She gently patted the babykangaroo. "He's so soft, Jack."Jack knelt down and touched the brown fur. It wassoft, the softest fur he had ever felt.
The shy little kangaroo stared at Jack with bigbrown eyes and trembled.
"Don't be scared, Joey," Annie said. "Your mom'sgoing to come back for you."Joey jumped away from Jack and Annie. He hoppedtoward Jack's pack, which was sitting on the ground.
The baby kangaroo took a giant leap and divedheadfirst into the pack! His whole body went inside, but his big feet stuck out. Then he turned himselfover and peeked out at Jack and Annie.
They both laughed.
"He thinks your pack is a pouch!" said Annie. "Iknow. Put it on backward. It will feel like when hismom carries him."Jack put his Australia book on the ground. ThenAnnie helped him put the pack on his chest instead ofon his back. The joey was heavy!
"There," Annie said. "You look just like a motherkangaroo.""Oh, brother," said Jack.
But he patted the baby's soft fur.
"Don't worry," he said to Joey. "You can stay inthere till your mom gets back.""Here, Joey, would you like some grass to eat?"asked Annie.
Annie scooped up a handful of grass and gave it tothe kangaroo.
He munched the grass, keeping his big eyes onAnnie.
"I hope his mom comes back for him soon," she saidworriedly.
"Yeah," said Jack.
He looked around the dry forest. There was no signof the mother kangaroo.
But Jack saw something else. "Look," he said toAnnie. The wisp of smoke in the sky had turned intoa big black cloud. Jack noticed the smell of burningwood was much stronger.
"What are those campers doing?" said Annie. "Arethey making a bonfire now or what?"A feeling of dread came over Jack. "What if..." hesaid. "What if..." In the distance, a tree suddenly burstinto flames.
"We're looking at a wildfire!" he said.
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