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Audubon Florida is warning beach goers to look out for nesting sea birds and not to trespass on marked nesting areas. They are also asking people not to shoot off fireworks, which could scare mother birds from the nest and cause the eggs to boil in the sun. Julie Wraithmell says sea bird nests are not what you imagine. “People think a nest is sticks in a tree, when in fact on a beach, a nest is just a shallow scrape in the sand. The eggs are speckled and the chicks are too. They’re adapted to freeze in the face of danger, so if people are trespassing in the posted areas, the chicks are vulnerable to crushing under foot. Sometimes people don’t even see them” says Wraithmell.

Twice last month, Audubon says nests were destroyed. In New Smyrna Beach, unleashed dogs attacked the nesting chicks, and motorcycle riders who ignored signs crushed multiple nests on Siesta Key.