The four young detectives, Tommy, Dick, Bobby and Mary pick a name for their new club. It is the Private Investigators Club (PIC). Dick suggests that they solve the problem of the missing birds. He has noticed that all the seagulls that normally float over Brockville and the nearby St. Lawrence River are gone. That afternoon after school they set out to find the birds. Bobby gets his canoe and he and Tommy paddle to McNair Island where the seagulls normally roost. Mary and Dick go to Fulford Place where they can watch from high on a hill. A strong earthquake strikes the area and a tsunami sweeps by, destroying many homes along the river. The kids are praised for having saved the lives of those they warned and are slated for an awards ceremony at City Hall. Mary, as President, gives a speech of acceptance and gets into trouble because she steals ideas and words from other great orators. The kids decide that the birds are brainy because they anticipated the earthquake.