The Boy and the Parrotfish

The Boy and the Parrotfish Çınar BİBER

Kai lived on a small island where the ocean sparkled like a handful of diamonds. Every morning, he pulled on his teal rash guard and yellow swim shorts. He grabbed his blue goggles and red snorkel and ran to the shore. The reef was his favorite place in the whole wide world. He loved watching the fish dart and swirl beneath the waves. 1

Kai's best friend was the reef itself. He knew the twisty coral tunnels and the sandy patches where seahorses hid. He knew the wavy seaweed where tiny crabs peeked out. His Uncle Sol, a fisherman with kind crinkled eyes, often said, "The reef is a busy neighborhood, Kai. Everybody has a job." Kai wondered what his own job might be. 2

One sunny morning, Kai slipped into the warm water and floated quietly. Silver fish flashed past him like tiny mirrors. A striped wrasse nibbled at a rock. Then something bright caught his eye. It was a fish the color of turquoise and pink cotton candy, with a beak like a tiny orange carrot. Kai had never seen anything so beautiful. 3

The colorful fish swam right up to Kai and wiggled its fanshaped tail. Its round purple eye blinked at him. "Hello there!" it seemed to say. Kai gasped into his snorkel. He popped his head up and called to the beach, "Uncle Sol! Come quick! There's a rainbow fish!" Uncle Sol waded in, chuckling. "That's a parrotfish," he said. "Her name is Pearl." 4

Kai dove back down to watch Pearl. She swam to a patch of coral and began nibbling at the green fuzzy stuff growing on it. Chomp, chomp, chomp went her beak. Kai watched, amazed. Pearl turned to him and said, "This green stuff is algae. It grows on the coral and makes it sick. I eat it all day long. Someone has to keep things tidy!" 5

Kai surfaced, his eyes wide. "Uncle Sol! Pearl eats the algae off the coral!" Uncle Sol nodded slowly. "She sure does. Parrotfish are like little reef cleaners. They scrape the algae away so the coral can breathe and grow strong. Without them, the whole reef would get covered in green fuzz." Kai stared at Pearl. She wasn't just pretty. She was important! 6

Pearl swam closer and nibbled a bit of coral. Then something surprising happened. She munched and munched, and out came a little puff of white sand that drifted down to the seabed. Kai's mouth dropped open. "Did you just... make sand?" he asked. Pearl wiggled her fins happily. "I surely did! Every grain of white beach sand you see? Parrotfish made lots of it!" 7

Kai raced back to the beach and shook the water from his curly black hair. He found Marina building a sandcastle, her purple sun hat shading her eyes. "Marina! Marina! Guess what?" he shouted. Marina put her hands on her hips. "What?" she said, raising an eyebrow. "The sand you're sitting on? A fish made it!" Marina looked at him like he had grown a second nose. 8

"That's impossible," Marina said, her hazel eyes squinting. "Fish don't make sand." Kai grabbed her hand. "Come see for yourself!" Together they waded into the water. Pearl was still there, nibbling and puffing little clouds of white sand. Marina watched through Kai's goggles. Her dimpled smile grew wider and wider. "You were right!" she squealed. "She really does make sand!" 9

Back on the sand, Kai drew a picture with a stick. He showed Marina how Pearl scraped algae off the coral, keeping it clean and healthy. He drew little fish nibbling and coral glowing bright. "So if we keep the reef clean," Kai said, "Pearl and all her friends stay happy and safe." Marina nodded slowly. "That's a big job for one little fish." "For lots of fish!" Kai said. 10

At dinner, Kai told his whole family about Pearl. His little brother asked, "Do all fish have jobs?" Kai thought hard. "Uncle Sol says the reef is a busy neighborhood," he said. "Every fish helps somehow." Uncle Sol smiled his crinkly smile. "Exactly right, Kai. Parrotfish clean the coral. Other fish eat the algae too. Sea urchins help. The whole reef works together." 11

The next day, Kai and Marina made a big poster. Kai drew a parrotfish with orange beak and sparkly scales. Marina wrote in her neatest letters: "PARROTFISH ARE REEF HELPERS! They clean the coral and make sand!" They hung it near the beach path so everyone could see. People stopped to read it and asked questions. Kai answered every single one, his freckled nose beaming with pride. 12

Marina gathered her friends and said, "Let's be reef helpers too!" Everyone agreed. They picked up litter from the beach. They were careful not to step on coral. They told visitors to look but not touch. Kai felt warm and proud inside. "Every fish has a job," he said, "and now every kid does too!" Marina laughed and put her hat back on. "Reef helpers forever!" 13

That evening, Kai sat on the dock and watched the sunset paint the water pink and orange, just like Pearl. Uncle Sol sat beside him. "You know, Kai," he said, "the ocean needs lots of different fish to stay healthy. Every one of them matters. Just like every one of us." Kai nodded. "I want to keep learning about them all," he said.