Three Little Fantails

Three Little Fantails Written and illustrated by Emma L. Pratt

Three Little Fantails Written and illustrated by Emma Pratt

Three little fantails want to make nests.

The first little fantail builds her nest at the bottom of the tree.

Busy little fantail.

Flit, flit, flit!

A big fat rat sees.

And jumps up to her nest!

Fly away fantail!

Fly away!

The second little fantail makes her nest in the middle of the tree.

Busy little fantail!

Flit, flit, flit!

The big fat rat sees.

And climbs up to her nest!

Fly away fantail!

Fly away!

The third little fantail makes her nest high at the top of the tree.

Busy little fantail!

Flit, flit, flit!

The big fat rat sees her nest and starts to climb.

But the branches are very small and the rat is heavy.

The three little fantails see the big fat rat.

Flit! Flit! Flit!

They fly together to scare him away.

Swoop!

Swoop!

Swoop!

They scare the big fat rat. He wibbles and wobbles and jumps!

The big fat rat falls from the tree!

He never climbs up to the top of the tree again.

Three little fantails make their nests high at the top of the tree.

Busy little fantails!

Happy little fantails!

Flit, flit, flit!

The fantail is native bird of Aotearoa New Zealand and is known in the indigenous language Te Reo, as the Piwakawaka.

If you go out walking in the forest, the fantail or Piwakawaka often follows you. They flit around from tree to tree like little guardians and are considered to be messengers of the spiritual world. They like to follow people because small insects are disturbed when people walk in the forest and that provides the fantails with a tasty meal!

Rats are an introduced species to Aotearoa New Zealand and pose a threat to the native birds.

People do everything they can to look after these precious natives.