One sunny day after the rain, a butterfly named Mark woke up on a leaf of a large daisy. The rain had just stopped and the sun peeked out from behind the clouds. Mark was a very curious little butterfly with magnificent blue wings dotted with yellow spots.
When he woke up today, he noticed something interesting. "Hmm, that's strange," he pondered. "Last night I got soaked and today my wings are completely dry. Why is that?"
First he flew to see a ladybug named Lena, who sent him to a little bee named Wilma. Wilma told him: "We bees have tiny hairs on our wings, but you butterflies have scales. Maybe those have something to do with it. Let's ask wise owl Sophia."
Together they flew to the old oak tree where the wisest owl in the forest lived.
"Excuse me, Lady Sophia," Mark began politely. "I have an important question. I would like to know why my butterfly wings dry so quickly after rain."
Sophia smiled. "That's a very interesting question. What if you found out for yourself with a little experiment?"
"An experiment?" Mark asked curiously.
"We need a drop of water and your wing," said Sophia. "Don't worry, you'll just place it carefully."
Wilma brought a drop of morning dew. "Now, Mark, bring your wing close to the drop, but don't touch it," Sophia instructed him.
Mark carefully brought his wing closer. All three watched intently. The drop seemed to repel from the wing!
"Why does that happen?" Mark marveled.
Sophia nodded. "Your butterfly wings are covered with tiny scales that contain natural wax. This wax repels water. It's natural protection so your wings don't absorb water and become heavy. If they absorbed water, you wouldn't be able to fly."
"Ah!" Mark understood. "So water doesn't stay on my wings and quickly runs down?"
"Exactly," Sophia nodded. "And your wings are very thin, so they dry quickly in the sun. But it's still wise to hide during heavy rain so it doesn't damage your beautiful wings."
"Oh, now I understand!" Mark rejoiced.
Mark was thrilled with all the new information. "Thank you, Lady Sophia! Now I know why my wings are dry so quickly. And I can tell the other butterflies too!"
A few days later, there was a great celebration in the forest. Mark and his friends prepared an exhibition called "Secrets of Water in Nature." They showed how different forest creatures adapted to life with water.
Mark's experiment was the biggest success. He carefully positioned his wing and Wilma carefully dropped a drop of water on it. Everyone watched in amazement as the water formed a perfect little ball that rolled across the wing like a small pearl.
"See?" Mark explained proudly to the young butterflies. "Our wings are like umbrellas. Water doesn't stay on them and quickly runs down. That's why we dry so quickly after rain. But it's still better to hide from heavy rain."
One little butterfly raised a question. "And what happens when our wings do get wet?"
"Excellent question!" Mark praised him. "If our wings get wet, we must let them dry properly before we start flying again. Wet wings are heavier. That's why after rain we often see butterflies sitting on leaves with their wings spread out – they're drying them in the sun."
At the end of the celebration, Mark received a medal from wise owl Sophia for curiosity and spreading knowledge. It was a shiny medal made from an oak leaf with a golden scale from a butterfly wing in the center.
"Remember, Mark," said Sophia, "curiosity and experimentation are paths to knowledge. And sharing knowledge is the path to wisdom."
Mark was very proud of himself. And from then on, whenever it rains in the forest, butterflies know why they should hide and why their wings dry so quickly. And when you see a butterfly after rain, sitting on a flower with spread wings, you might remember Mark and his great discovery about the secret of dry wings.