One beautiful day, two birds were sitting on a log.
As they floated down the Nile River, they chatted away.
"Have you caught any delicious fish?" asked Mrs. Bluewing.
"Well, I almost did several times!" began Mrs. Greenfeather.
She leaned closer to Mrs. Bluewing.
"But you-know-who is lurking in the waters," she whispered.
"You mean . . . you mean . . ." Mrs. Bluewing's eyes got big.
"That's right! The prince of the swamp!" snapped the crocodile as he leaped up from under the water.
The poor birds nearly died of fright.
All the animals were terrified of the great big crocodile.
The crocodile ate whatever he wanted whenever he wanted!
After finishing a big meal, the crocodile usually took a nap under the bushes.
He was just about to doze off when . . .
"Ouch!" The crocodile opened his eyes. Something was causing him pain.
"Ha-ha-ha! I'm the strongest beast on earth!" laughed the crocodile.
"Nothing can cause me pain!" he boasted.
The crocodile was about to go back to sleep when . . .
"Ouch! Ouch!" he cried out. The crocodile rubbed his jaw.
The ache was coming from inside his mouth.
When he couldn't stand the pain any longer, he decided to go to the dental clinic.
"Help! It hurts so much!" the crocodile roared.
No one expected to see the crocodile at the dental clinic!
He had never been there before. The dentist was a very old bird.
"What seems to be the problem?" he asked in a low, slow voice.
"My teeth hurt!" moaned the crocodile.
"Open your mouth and say, 'ahhh,'" the dentist instructed.
The crocodile opened his mouth as wide as he could and said, "Ahhh!"
The dentist's head disappeared into the crocodile's mouth.
"How long have you had this pain?" he asked from inside.
"Urhemghehmdogoeth," answered the crocodile.
"It looks pretty bad. I have to go in deeper," the dentist said.
"Urghemdogege," replied the crocodile.
"Don't worry. I'll be careful," echoed the dentist.
Suddenly there was a rumbling noise. It came from the crocodile's stomach!
The crocodile was in so much pain that he had forgotten to have lunch!
He felt very hungry. "Wait a minute," he thought to himself.
"There is a bird inside my mouth! I can eat him!"
"Almost finished!" the dentist suddenly shouted from inside.
"How does it feel?" The dentist pulled his head out of the crocodile's mouth.
"The pain's gone! It's gone!" the crocodile shouted with joy.
"Unless you take care of your teeth, the pain will come back," the dentist warned him.
"How can I take care of my teeth?" asked the crocodile.
"You can't do it by yourself.
I must clean them for you," said the dentist.
The crocodile thought about his lunch again, but he decided not to eat the bird.
Of course, the crocodile still eats whatever he wants, but he must go to the dentist for regular checkups.
And he cannot eat the dentist, because if he does, who will take care of his teeth?
The Nile crocodile is indeed the prince of the swamp.
He will devour just about anything, but there is one bird that he won't eat.
When the crocodile sees this bird, he comes out of the water and opens his mouth.
Then the bird goes to work and cleans all 64 of the crocodile's teeth.
That is how this bird got its nickname—the crocodile bird!