Badgers? They poke around looking for insects.

squirrels are a digging at the moment.

Just going to say that Lisal, the little blighters are 'planting' conkers everywhere here :-)

Have known woodpeckers to do this - digging for bugs and at certain times leather jackets - and actually watched lesser spotted woodpecker doing so! Weird but possible! They also came back to same holes from day before creating long deep lacerations in the lawn. Squirrels will tend to be burying at this time of year, so unlikely to leave their nuts exposed now ... during the winter maybe when they dig them up?!

It is the shallowness that made me suspect badgers. I watched one feeding in my front garden and in the morning, I found patches just as you describe. It will be interesting to discover what did make them. Have you googled it?

I also would say bagders at the moment, they are dig up my lawn at the moment

Found any droppings? Smelled any odours? Likely badgers as the others suggest rooting for grubs,though foxes will scrape the ground up for the same purpose if necessary..& rabbits,& squirrels often it seems for the sheer hell of it. So keep an open mind or try to catch 'em at it.

... + My comiserations Simbad. Not conkers..but they'd have me an oak & hazel forest growing if they had their way!