This pattern of sand balls was created by a sand bubbler crab. There were hundreds or perhaps thousands of such patterns, each one different, on the beach. The sand crab that made this pattern can just be seen in the center of the photo.

At low tide, the crabs emerge from their holes beneath the sand to gather microscopic food
that the tide has brought in. The crabs inspect each grain of sand for food, then roll the discarded sand into balls.