"Yummy" thought the animals, but then look what happened... A picture book for children (read aloud)

"Yummy" thought the animals - but then look what happened...
It’s not just kids but animals too,
who funny things can happen to.
Do you know about hedgehogs, frogs and jackdaws?
And do you know what food they put in their jaws?
And what about bumblebee, squirrel and beaver?
They like to snack, and the more often, the better.
But wait: Something is also amiss while eating,
for example, when someone is deeply sleeping.
Have a look now at what the animals are doing:
It is truly something that will start you giggling.
---
The Green Woodpecker
It was early when the baby birds were waking.
“I know where it is that the worm is hiding!”
Why it is that they wait before the hole in vain?
Because the worms below have yet to wake again.
The Bumblebee
The bumblebee flies to the foxglove,
whose nectar he especially loves.
Round as a ball, it's a taste he can't do without:
"Oh dear! How will I ever find my way out?"
The Kingfisher
"Down under the water, there is something flashing!"
And now, in that cool fluid, we can see him plunging!
But from above comes the woodpecker's warning:
"Watch out, it's not real, it's not really happening!"
The Frog
“There you are, you yummy fly!
To make you mine, what should I try?"
Is he having his lunch now? Almost, not yet though.
That long tongue is hanging on a bough.
The Grey Heron
"Aha! There it is, that's my fish!
Mmm, delicious, how it shines, so fresh!"
The beak shoots into the water like a spear!
But this fish is not getting caught this year.
The Beaver
“I'm cutting that birch down, and it's going to be fun.
With my teeth, it will fall faster than the rays of the sun."
But the tree falls in a forest that's as tangled as a mop.
So he can't get those buds, the ones there at the top.
The Jackdaws
Two black birds are sitting very still,
marvelling at sausages there on the grill.
"That's what happens with us foolish jackdaws:
The sausage is now on hot coals, not in our maws."
The Bunny
The greenest cabbage is growing up there.
How do I get it from there to down here?"
Someone is coming fast to that hiding place!
The yummy cabbage will be gone, and at a quick pace.
The Great Spotted Woodpecker
“What do I see over there on the tree?
A big larva, oh what a lovely vision I see!"
The spotted woodpecker is mistaken and yells out: Eek!
Too late: it's chewing gum, and now it's stuck to his beak.
The Hedgehog
"Mmm, the scent of that pear is divine!
If only I could fly, that would be fine."
It comes from above, as if out of nowhere -
that sweet pear has flown away in the air.
The Stag Beetle
"A mushroom! It wanted to hide itself away.
But I revealed it to the light of day!"
The beetle scrambles up there, full of delight.
He slips, landing on his back, no longer upright.
The Squirrel
"I hide it by the fence in the ground,
this walnut, so round and brown."
In the winter, my hunger is great.
"But where is it now? I can't wait!"
---
Did you know that...
the green woodpecker is also called the "laughing bird” because its song sometimes sounds like human laughter?
that bumblebees can also fly backwards?
that the kingfisher is also called the "flying gem” because its feathers shimmer in so many colours?
that there are 5,800 different species of frog?
that grey herons breed in tree-top colonies, making loud squawks as they fight over things they use to make their nests, so you can hear them even from far away?
that beavers keep the entrance of their burrow under water to protect themselves from other animals? That building they make is also called a beaver's lodge.
that jackdaws love everything that glitters and gleams? Indeed, stealing is one of their favourite things.
that rabbits whistle and drum their hind legs when danger is about?
that great spotted woodpeckers close their eyes when knocking on wood to protect themselves from the flying splinters?
that hedgehogs have hollow spines because they are much lighter? There are always 8,000 of them.
that male stag beetles fight over a female until one throws the other off the tree with his antlers?
that squirrels use their tail as a rudder, a parachute, and a blanket?