Fine Feathers Fashion Revue
Characters: Blue Jay, Harriet Hare, Wendy Woodcock, Mr. Cardinal, Mr. Mallard Duck.
Props: Loony-bird costume.
Blue Jay Welcome one and all to the
Fine Feathers Fashion Revue!
Hare What’s a revue?
Blue Jay It’s a show with lots of different performers showing what they can do.
Hare That sounds like fun. Can I be in the revue?
Blue Jay Harriet Hare, you can’t be in a Fine Feathers Fashion Revue unless you’re a bird. Only birds have feathers. No other animals have them.
Hare You’re right. I don’t have any feathers.
Blue Jay Or wings, or a beak, and you’ve got two extra feet.
Hare They’re not extra – I need all four for hopping! And even if I don’t have feathers, I have very nice fur.
Blue Jay Yes, but today’s show is about birds. I’m afraid you can’t be in the show, but you can watch it. You’ll get to see some amazing birds.
Hare Well, okay. I’ll stay and watch the show, but I still wish I could be in it. (exits)
Blue Jay Now where was I? Oh yes. Welcome, one and all. Today we’ll meet some exceptional birds, with outstanding adaptations for their different lives. But remember, it’s not just how we look that’s important. It’s also the different things we can do. So let’s meet our first performer. (woodcock enters) Hello! Hello! Time for the first bird. I wonder where…
Wendy Woodcock I’m right here! I’m Wendy Woodcock. I’m wearing these fine camouflage feathers so I can easily hide on the forest floor.
Blue Jay Well, well. I couldn’t even see you. Those certainly are very fine feathers for hiding. I see you have an especially long bill, too.
Woodcock Yes, this long sensitive beak helps me find wiggly worms in the soil.
Blue Jay A useful feature for worm-digging.
Woodcock But it’s easiest to find them if you do a little dance like this. Oh a one-two-three (face the other way) and a one-two-three.
Blue Jay How unique! Well, let’s have a round of applause for our camouflaged, long-billed, dancing woodcock. (applause; woodcock exits) And for our next act we have Mr. Redbird the Cardinal.
Cardinal Tah-dah! My bright plumage is hard to miss. No camouflage coloring for me. It’s a signal to other males to stay off my territory, and I must say, it’s like a beacon to females.
Blue Jay It’s true, you’re hard to miss.
Cardinal And see this big orange beak of mine? It’s a great seed-cracking bill. Yup, and when I really want to make a point, I can raise this crest on my head. It lets other birds know that I mean business!
Blue Jay Well, thank you, Mr. Cardinal. You’ve got a showy outfit that does a lot of jobs well. Let’s all thank Mr. Redbird. (applause; cardinal exits) Now then, next on our program is Mr. Mallard Duck, a bird of many talents.
Mallard Duck Hi. I have webbed feet, so I can paddle around in the water.
Blue Jay A good thing for a puddle duck.
Duck And look at my amazing beak. It’s wide and flat and has little ridges so I can filter food, like little floating plants and stuff, out of the water.
Blue Jay Like a built-in strainer.
Duck You bet. And what’s more, when I swim, my feathers don’t even get wet. I just have to oil them to keep them waterproof.
Blue Jay That’s perfect fowl weather gear! Well, let’s clap for our web-toed, filter-beaked, waterproof, dabbling duck! (applause, duck exits) Now, it looks like we have one more performer on the program. That’s odd. It seems to be a mystery bird. I wonder who it could be.
Loony-bird (hare in bird disguise) It’s me, a loony-bird.
Blue Jay My, my! I’ve never met a loony-bird before. What can you tell us about yourself?
Loony-bird Well, my long toes help me to wade in the water without sinking into the mud, and I have this beak pouch for scooping up fish.
Blue Jay Like a pelican, with heron feet.
Loony-bird Right. And, these short wings are good for hovering by flowers while I fan my beautiful tail to attract a mate.
Blue Jay A turkey, hummingbird combo.
Loony-bird Yes! And, when there’s a hawk or owl in the area, I call the other loony-birds to chase it away.
Blue Jay How do you do that?
Loony-bird I holler “Jay, jay, jay” and they all come to mob the predator.
Blue Jay Hmm. That sounds familiar! What I can’t figure out about you are those long, furry ears. They look a lot like rabbit ears.
Hare Oh! I forgot about my ears…
Blue Jay Could it be that under all those fine feathers, there’s a hare in disguise?
Hare You’re right, it’s me, Harriet Hare. I guess it was kind of a hare-brained idea. I really wanted to be in the Fine Feathers Fashion Revue.
Blue Jay Well, you do have some very fine feathers – even if it is just a costume.
Hare Thanks. It was easy to make. I copied all these parts from real birds. There sure are a lot of different kinds of birds in the world, with lots of amazing adaptations.
Blue Jay There sure are. But you are definitely the looniest bird in the show! Let’s have a round of applause for the Loony-bird. (applause)
Hare Aw, thanks.
Blue Jay And thanks, everyone, for coming to our Fine Feathers Fashion Revue – where every bird is a star.
THE END
Nearby Nature 