Project Gutenberg 2020-02-06 Public domain in the USA. 91 Banta, Frank When Whirlybirds Call Produced from Worlds of If Science Fiction, January 1963 Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net "When Whirlybirds Call" by Frank Banta is a science fiction novella written in the early 1960s. This story revolves around a bizarre menace in the form of giant, predatory whirlybirds that terrorize the inhabitants of Featherton on Grimes Planet. The plot centers on the character of Five-gun Charles DeCrabbe, a self-assured bounty hunter determined to rid the town of these feathered aggressors with his assortment of unconventional weaponry and tactics. In the narrative, DeCrabbe navigates the challenges posed by the Coocoo-downdraft-peoplehawk-whirlybirds, which capture and drop townspeople. Initially underestimating the situation, the townspeople have failed to subdue these peculiar threats despite their best efforts. As DeCrabbe sets to work, he employs a series of strategic and sometimes humorous plans, including using robot mannequins to lure and trap the whirlybirds. Ultimately, through a mix of ingenuity and perseverance, he learns to exploit the birds' vulnerabilities, leading to a triumphant departure from the town, where he is celebrated as a hero. The story blends elements of adventure and satire within its quirky premise, showcasing the concept that sometimes the most bizarre challenges can lead to unexpected solutions. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 75.0 (7th grade). Fairly easy to read. en Science fiction Short stories Hunting stories Human-alien encounters -- Fiction Life on other planets -- Fiction Space colonies -- Fiction Hunters -- Fiction PS Text Category: Science-Fiction & Fantasy Category: Humour Category: Adventure 39431 2025-06-24T10:24:18.956085 text/html 15379 2024-10-17T16:12:42 text/html 101712 2025-06-24T10:24:20.516056 application/epub+zip 100540 2025-06-24T10:24:19.306054 application/epub+zip 74108 2025-06-24T10:24:19.106057 application/epub+zip 135322 2025-06-24T10:24:21.587122 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 128412 2025-06-24T10:24:20.331056 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 102069 2022-09-27T17:37:13.253949 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 33084 2023-09-26T08:43:45.483544 text/plain 13266 2024-10-17T16:12:42 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 16787 2025-06-24T10:24:21.704092 application/rdf+xml 30880 2025-06-24T10:24:19.187151 image/jpeg 4865 2025-06-24T10:24:19.148046 image/jpeg 328034 2025-06-24T10:24:18.965083 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog