The Bird Twice Given Up For Lost

In the east of the island, Polly flew into an old forest. Moss covered the trees. Little sunlight reached the ground. A small grey and pink bird lives only here. Its name is the priolo.

The bird almost disappeared. People saw none after nineteen thirty-two. Then in nineteen sixty-seven, people found some again. But farms kept taking its home. Soon fewer than one hundred pairs were left. It is one of Europe's rarest birds.

People worked hard to help it. They planted the right trees again. Polly saw two priolos fly by. Their breasts flashed soft pink.

Polly stayed still. The forest grew still again. It felt like a good trade: quiet, for a bird that still lives.