When a strange egg appears in their nest, Mr. and Mrs. Bird kindly take it upon themselves to raise the &quot;baby bird&quot; inside. But when the egg hatches, the Birds are in for a big surprise--&quot;Junior&quot; is the oddest-looking baby bird they've ever seen--with big, long <i>jaws</i> full of teeth and an appetite to match. In fact, he looks more like a baby <i>alligator</i> than a baby bird! Nevertheless, the devoted Birds run themselves ragged feeding Junior until he gets so big, he must leave the nest or it will collapse underneath him. <i>But how can Junior fly without wings</i>? To the delight of the Birds--and readers!--the dilemma is solved when Junior takes off from a branch overlooking a pond.