Here's one of last summer's telltale sea turtle tracks leading to, and from, the nest which is seen in the foreground. Usually, within a day, the nests are "staked out" by the environmental group that is hired each year to record and protect each nest. The nests are protected by stakes and bright plastic warning ribbon surrounding the nest. It's against the law to disturb these nests, just as it is against the law to disturb a sea turtle that is in the process of going to and from the nest, or while laying eggs. During our beach walk the other day, one of the environmental group employees, just finishing up for the night, told us that she had finished a night of checking out the entire beach in our area on the hour, each hour. They have been patrolling the beach each hour of the night since the beginning of March (beginning of the turtle nesting season on our beaches) because, she indicated, in mid-March a beach renourishment project will get under way on our beach area. Because of that project, they need to check the beach more frequently in case there is a need to relocate any new nests that might be destroyed during the beach renourishment.