With a good morning stretch, Pip the deer mouse peeks out of her cozy hollow and greets her closest friend and neighbor.  “Good Morning, Mia!”

Mia the blue jay flutters down from her roost in the branches above Pip’s hollow and chirps, “Good morning, Pip! Ready for another adventure?”

“Always!” Pip squeaks with excitement.

“Let’s go!”  Mia chirps and heads into the Watercolor Woods, the woodland wonder they call home.

Scampering through the underbrush, they see Rosemary the rabbit munching on a patch of wild strawberries near the meadow.

“Hello, Pip!  Hello, Mia!”  Rosemary greets them with a smile and a twitch of her cottontail.  “Have you heard about the buzz in the woods?”

Pip’s eyes sparkle with curiosity.  “Buzz?  What buzz?”

Rosemary explains, “The native bees in the meadow are disappearing!  It’s causing quite a stir in the community.”

Pip’s ears perk up, “Disappearing bees?”

“We should investigate,”. Mia suggests.

“Yes!  Thank you Rosemary for telling us.”  Pip is excited to discover what is happening to the bees.”

“Let’s head down to the river.  Maybe someone will know something.”  Mia suggests as she walks the path.

“Look, it’s Moonbeam in the wildflowers.”  Pip waves.

“Morning friends!”  Moonbeam the skunk greets them.  “Where are you headed to in such a hurry?”

“We are looking for the bees.  They seem to be disappearing.”  Pip explains.  “Have you noticed anything unusual?”

Moonbeam scrunches her nose, thinking.  “Now that you mention it, I haven’t seen any bees buzzing around lately.  It’s like they have vanished into thin air.”

Pip nods, “Thanks Moonbeam.  We’ll keep looking.”

Mia looks towards the riverbank, “There’s Juniper collecting acorns.”

“Hello, Pip!  Hello, Mia!”  Juniper waves with a mouthful of acorns.  “What brings you to the riverbank?”

“We are searching for the bees.  They seem to be disappearing.”  Mia explains.  “Have you seen anything suspicious?”

Juniper scratches her head, thinking.  “No.  Not really.  Now that I think about it, I haven’t seen the bees at all lately.

Pip realizes, “It looks like the bees have disappeared from all of the Watercolor Woods.  Why?”

Hearing leaves rustle behind them, Pip and Mia turn to see Josie and Walter, the twin turtles.  “Hello, Josie and Walter.”

“Hello, Pip!  Hello, Mia!”  Josie greets them.

“Have you noticed anything strange here at the river lately?”  Pip asks.

Walter stops and thinks for a minute, “We did see some odd-looking flying insects buzzing near the passion flower vines yesterday.  They were yellow and black, and very busy.”

Pip’s eyes widen, “Could this be a clue?”

Heading over to the vines, Mia suddenly stops.  “Look, Pip.”  Mia gently picks up a tiny bee wing with her beak.

Pip squeaks, “A clue! And, look Mia!  There is another one over there on the trail.”

“And, here is another one!”  Mia chirps.  “Follow the trail Pip.”

“Listen.  I hear buzzing.”  Pip whispers.

Mia tilts her head and listens. “This way, Pip.”

“There they are!”  Pip points and whispers.  “Over on the vines.”

Mia looks confused.  “They are buzzing, but look closer.  They are not bees.”

“Moving a little closer Pip realizes, “They are yellow jackets!”

“That’s why our native bees are disappearing.”  Mia now understands.  “The yellow jackets are causing all kinds of trouble.”

Moonbeam, out of breath catching up to Pip and Mia, gasps.  “Oh!  That’s not good, not good at all.  What are we going to do?”

Pip looks around, “We need to find a way to convince the yellow jackets to leave peacefully and let the native bees return home.”

Moonbeam jumps in with a suggestion.  “I can use my powerful scent to create a barrier around the meadow.  That will deter the yellow jackets from entering.”

Juniper says, “I can scatter wildflowers and acorn caps filled with water to lure the bees back into the meadow.”

Josie and Walter offer their help too.  “We can patrol the riverbank for stray yellow jackets trying to sneak back into the meadow.”

Mia volunteers, “I can keep watch from above and notify Moonbeam to spray if Walter and Josie see stragglers sneaking back.”

Pip offers, “I can help Juniper lure the bees back to the meadow.”

“Rosemary, can you stand watch in the meadow and keep an eye on the bees as they return?”  Pip asks.

“Absolutely!”  Rosemary agrees.

Over the next few weeks, the woodland friends put their plan into action.  Daily, they work together to help the native bees return home.

“Look, the yellow jackets are leaving!”  Mia announces.

Moonbeam spreads the word to the others. “They are retreating!” 

“They are not a match for us!”  Pip exclaims.

A few days later, Juniper announces, “Look!  The native bees are returning.  The plan is working.”

Pip and her friends break out in a happy dance.  “We did it!  Together, we saved the native bees in the Watercolor Woods!”