Hoppers

After attempting to free her elementary school class pets from their cramped habitats, six-year-old Mabel Tanaka is suspended. Her frustrated mother leaves her with her grandmother, who lives near a glade. Inspired by her grandmother's love of nature, Mabel develops a deep appreciation for wildlife. Thirteen years later, after her parents move away and her grandmother dies, Mabel continues caring for the glade. When Beaverton's mayor, Jerry Generazzo, announces plans to route part of his beltway through it, claiming the animals have already left, the now 19-year-old college student unsuccessfully campaigns to stop the project.

While trying to lure the animals back, Mabel discovers that her biology professor, Dr. Sam, and colleagues Nisha and Conner have secretly developed the "Hoppers" program, which allows humans to inhabit robotic animals. Ignoring Sam's warning about interfering with wildlife, Mabel hops into a robotic beaver and escapes the lab.

Mistaken for a real beaver, Mabel is brought before Mammal King George, who shelters the glade's displaced animals in an overcrowded dam. She discovers Jerry has installed artificial trees that emit sound waves audible only to animals, driving them away. After Mabel destroys one of the devices, many animals return to the glade. As she grows closer to George, she prepares to reveal her identity, but Jerry destroys part of the glade with explosives and installs more sound-emitting trees.

Mabel and George convene the Animal Council, whose members include the monarchs of the insects, amphibians, fish, reptiles, and birds. Though initially indifferent, the Council agrees to help after Mabel warns that Jerry will eventually threaten all of their habitats. However, her speech instead inspires them to assassinate him. When Mabel tries to stop them, she accidentally kills the Insect Queen. She and George escape as the animals destroy the robotic bodies Nisha and Conner used to spy on the meeting, exposing the humans' deception. The Insect Prince, Titus, crowns himself king and assumes control of the Council.

Although initially upset by Mabel's recklessness, George forgives her and agrees to help protect Jerry. Joined by Loaf the beaver, Tom the lizard, and Ellen the bear, they force Jerry to drive to the glade in hopes of stopping the project. Seagulls working for the Council attempt to kill him by dropping a shark named Diane onto his car, but the group escapes. Jerry still refuses to abandon the beltway, prompting a frustrated Mabel to reveal their location to both the Council and the scientists. They arrive and disconnect her from the robotic beaver, causing her to faint.

When Mabel awakens, the Council has taken everyone hostage and forced the scientists to build a robotic clone of Jerry for Titus to inhabit. Titus plans to impersonate the mayor and use the sound trees to massacre the crowd attending Jerry's re-election rally at the glade. Before leaving, Titus condemns Mabel for stealing the technology, deceiving the animals, and using them for her own goals, while Jerry blames her for provoking the conflict. Realizing her obsession with saving the glade has only worsened the situation, Mabel reconciles with Jerry, who reluctantly hops into the robotic beaver to help her escape.

At the rally, Mabel fails to persuade Titus to abandon his plan. Jerry, the animals, and the scientists attempt to unhop him, but the effort fails and destroys the robotic beaver. During the struggle, Mabel climbs a sound tree to retrieve Jerry's phone after knocking it into the branches. She tears away the latex mask covering Titus's robotic face, preventing him from using facial recognition to unlock the phone and activate the trees. Furious, Titus tears down the tree and reveals his plan to have the insects exterminate every other species, turning the Council against him. The falling tree destroys the robotic body and ignites a wildfire that spreads toward the city. After Titus is eaten by the Amphibian King, the Council joins Mabel, George, and the other animals in dismantling the dam, flooding the glade and extinguishing the fire. An ant queen succeeds Titus as the new Insect Queen.

Jerry reroutes the beltway, and the glade is designated a protected wildlife preserve. Mabel graduates from college, and although the Hoppers program is discontinued because of her actions, Sam hires her as an assistant. Mabel and George remain friends, communicating through text-to-speech software.