Does the nuthatch know what it is doing? Probably not. The nuthatch's tiny brain is not much larger than an average-size kidney bean, but the perky bird has a strong hunger awareness which propels it from one place to another seeking insect food. It finds bark beetles and pulls them from their lairs and eats the eggs of gypsy moths. We might not think that a few nuthatches could control the insect population of the forest, but what this bird and others like it do is a positive good in preserving the forests. Experts estimate that a female beetle, producing only 50 eggs in a lifetime, could possibly become the ancestor of 1,950 trillion beetles in the tenth generation if all the descendants matured and later reproduced. Therefore, when the nuthatch enjoys its insects meals it is doing mor…