4 Speedy, Slow Down!

4 SPEEDY, SLOW DOWN! "Got it," said Shani. The two rangers jumped back into their jeep. "Come on, Jack!" said Annie. Holding Speedy, she started to climb into the jeep, too. "Oh, no, no, no, kids. You can't go with us," said Shani. "Why not?" asked Annie. "Too dangerous!" said Jomo. "We don't mind danger!" said Annie. Jack hung back. "Wait, what kind of danger?" he asked. "Poachers," said Shani. "They might spot Rosie. We have to race to the west side of the reserve before their chopper lands." "What's a chopper?" asked Annie. "A helicopter," Jack said. "Yes, sometimes poachers use helicopters and carry heavy weapons," said Shani.

Jomo started the jeep engine. "The Safari Ride will be back soon," he said. "Please wait here for the bus. Don't wander the bush." "We'll see you back at the camp!" said Shani. The jeep lurched forward. "Wait! You forgot Speedy!" Annie shouted. The rangers didn't hear her as their jeep roared away. Speedy made sad, chirpy sounds. "I'm sorry, Speedy. They had to go save Rosie," Annie said to the tiny primate. She looked at Jack. "I really wanted to go with them. Didn't you?" "Uh, no. It sounded super-dangerous," said Jack. "Shani and Jomo are trained to handle these situations." "But I wanted to save Rosie, too," said Annie. "I know you did," said Jack. "But let's just do what they told us and wait here for the Safari Ride to come back." "You didn't want to join the ride before," said Annie. "I know, but it's different now," Jack said. "We can tell the driver that Jomo and Shani told us to get onboard and meet them back at their camp." Annie sighed. "So we just stand here and wait?"

"Yes. And we take care of Speedy," said Jack. "Okay. That's important, too," said Annie. She hugged the tiny bush baby. Jack looked at their booklet again. He read aloud: Never before has it been so important to keep large rare animals alive on earth. In a number of African nature reserves, rangers risk their lives to save endangered elephants and rhinos. "I'd love to train to be a reserve ranger someday," said Annie. "Wouldn't you?" "Um…maybe," said Jack. He looked around. He felt hot, sweaty, and itchy. He waved the booklet to shoo away mosquitoes whining around his head. "You okay?" said Annie. "It's too buggy here near the creek," said Jack. "Let's walk up the road toward those trees. The bus will come back that way." "Sure," said Annie. "And maybe we'll find out what Morgan means by a paper tree." "Maybe," said Jack. He and Annie started up the dusty dirt road. As they walked, Speedy perched on Annie's shoulder.

Jack turned the pages of the booklet. He read aloud: For more than thirty million years, rhinos and their ancestors have survived ice ages, earthquakes, floods, and volcanoes. "Rhinos and their ancestors?" said Annie. "What does that mean?" "All creatures have ancestors that go back through time," said Jack. "Like our great-great-great- grandmothers, grandfathers, and parents. You know." "Oh, yeah, our family history," said Annie. "Uncle Josh is making a chart of that." "Look. Here's a great-great-ancestor chart for rhinos," said Jack. He showed Annie the chart in the booklet. At the top was an illustration of a prehistoric rhino. At the bottom of the chart was a present-day rhino. Jack read: Modern-day rhinoceroses are descended from the family of prehistoric rhinos, which includes the Paraceratherium (say pa-ruhseh- ruh-THEE-ree-um).

"Whew. Hard word," said Annie. "Just look at this monster," said Jack. He pointed to the drawing at the top of the chart. It showed a huge, long-necked creature. To illustrate the creature's size, there was a tiny person drawn next to it. Jack read more: This ancient rhinoceros was the largest land mammal that ever lived. The creature weighed at least five times as much as a rhino of today. It was a plant-eater that mainly ate leaves and grass. "Cool, a plant-eater," said Annie. "Yep. But I wouldn't want it to step on me," said Jack. He kept reading:

The armor of the rhino family has protected the animals for millions of years. But humans have found ways to kill rhinos, and they are critically endangered. Some experts worry that black rhinos could disappear from Africa within ten years. "What? Only ten years?" cried Annie. "That's horrible! Rhinos have been around for over thirty million years! And now they might disappear from Africa in just ten years? I hate that!" "Me too," said Jack. Suddenly Speedy let out a shrill whistle. He leapt out of Annie's arms onto the ground. He frantically hopped around, jabbering. "Speedy, what's wrong?" said Annie. The tiny bush baby took flying leaps up the road. He headed toward the bushes and umbrella-like trees. "Wait! Wait! Speedy!" Annie called. "Speedy, slow down! We have to keep you safe!" She started running after the bush baby. "Come on, Jack!" Annie shouted. Jack stuck the booklet into his pocket. Then he raced after Annie and Speedy up the dirt road.