7. Swan Surprise

Chapter 7 Swan Surprise "What're you guys looking at?" Brian asked. He and Lucy were standing behind Nate. "S-snake!" Nate said, pointing. "It's a giant, man-eating python!" "No it isn't," Bradley said. "It's just a big water snake." "Very big!" Brian said. "Snakes are shy," Lucy said. "I bet it's more afraid of us than we are of it."

第七章天鹅的惊喜“你们在看什么？”布莱恩问。 他和露西站在内特身后。 “S-snake !”内特指着说。 “是一条巨大的吃人蟒！”“不，不是的，”布拉德利说。 “这只是一条大水蛇。” “非常大!”布莱恩说。“蛇很害羞。”露茜说。 “我敢打赌，它更怕我们，而不是我们怕它。”

"It couldn't be more afraid than I am!" Nate insisted. "It's so beautiful," Lucy said. "Look how shiny its scales are." Pal lowered his nose to sniff the snake. The snake uncurled its long body and started to crawl away. "What's the matter with its belly?" Brian asked. "It's got a big bump!" "I think it just ate something," Bradley said. The kids watched as the snake disappeared in the tall weeds. "What if it ate one of our eggs?" Nate said. "That bump in its belly looks like an egg!" "I saw a snake on TV that swallowed an egg whole," Lucy told the boys. "How do they crack them open?" Brian asked. "I think their stomach muscles crack the egg once it's inside," Lucy said. "Oooh, gross!" Nate said.

“它不可能比我更害怕！”内特坚持道。 “太美了。”露茜说。 “看它的鳞片多亮啊。” 帕尔垂下鼻子嗅蛇。 那条蛇舒展了它长长的身体，开始爬走。 “它的肚子怎么了？”布莱恩问。 “它有一个大凸起！”“我想它只是吃了什么东西，”布拉德利说。 孩子们看着蛇消失在高高的杂草中。 “如果它吃了我们的蛋怎么办？”内特说。 “它肚子上的那个肿块看起来像个鸡蛋！”“我在电视上看到一条蛇吞下了一个完整的鸡蛋，”露西告诉男孩们。 “他们是怎么把它们打开的？”布莱恩问。 露茜说：“我想，鸡蛋一进去，它们的腹部肌肉就会把鸡蛋敲碎。” “喔!恶心!”内特说。

"Guys, we don't know if that snake ate our egg," Bradley said. "That lump in its belly could be a frog or something." "And we don't know if the raccoons did, either," Brian said. "So what do we do?" "Keep looking for the eggshells," Lucy suggested. "If we find them, at least we'll know something ate our eggs!" "If we bring the eggshells home, maybe we can still get the prize," Nate said. When the snake was gone, the kids kept walking. Pal was still tugging on the leash. His nose was on the ground, sniffing everything. Suddenly the two swans swam closer to the kids. They began hissing and flapping the water with their wings. "Guys, I don't think they want us here," Nate said. "I wonder why," Brian said.

“伙计们，我们不知道那条蛇是不是吃了我们的蛋，”布拉德利说。 “它肚子里的那个肿块可能是青蛙什么的。” 布莱恩说：“我们也不知道浣熊是否也这样做了。” “那我们该怎么办？”“继续找蛋壳吧。”露茜建议。 “如果我们找到他们，至少我们知道有东西吃了我们的鸡蛋！”“如果我们把蛋壳带回家，也许我们还能得到奖品，”内特说。 蛇走了以后，孩子们继续往前走。 伙计还在拉着皮带。 他的鼻子贴在地上，嗅着所有的东西。 突然，两只天鹅游向孩子们。 它们开始发出嘶嘶声，用翅膀拍打着水面。 “伙计们，我觉得他们不希望我们在这里，”内特说。 “我想知道为什么，”布莱恩说。

"I know why they're mad at us," Bradley said. "Look." He bent down and parted the grass next to the water's edge. "It's their nest." The nest was as big around as a tire. It was made of three layers. The bottom layer was twigs and small branches. On top of the branches was a thick layer of grass. The grass was lined with soft swan feathers. "Oh my goodness!" Lucy said, pointing at the nest. In the middle of the feathers lay four golden eggs.

“我知道他们为什么生我们的气，”布拉德利说。 “看。”他弯下腰，把水边的草分开。 “这是它们的巢。”这个巢有轮胎那么大。 它由三层组成。 底层是小树枝和小树枝。 树枝上长着一层厚厚的草。 草地上长着柔软的天鹅羽毛。 “哦，天哪！”露茜指着鸟巢说。 在羽毛的中间有四个金色的蛋。