Photo Courtesy of John Trott CHECKING THE NEST: A

Photo Courtesy of John Trott CHECKING THE NEST: A bluebird takes food home to its nest. research was done in Maryland by ornithologist, Eugene Morton, who has done pioneering work in behavior, much of it at the Smithsonian’s Conservation and Research Center near Front Royal. Bluebirds have always seemed models of devotion and fidelity; a pair seem to exist only for each other and their young. What one sees and believes is not necessarily what is. An ornithologist at Clemson University in South Carolina made a startling discovery on bluebird breeding behavior several years ago. In order to pass on her genes, a ' luebird must secure a mate w th an established territory rich in food with nesting cavities: nest boxes.