Why NatureMap?

One of the appealing aspects of the NatureMapping program is that data collection becomes a valuable component of a national program designed to improve wildlife management. Participants can take pride in knowing that the information they provide will contribute to a national database.

NatureMapping has its origins in Washington State, where it began as an outreach program of the National GAP Analysis Project - a countrywide program. In fact,  Idaho GAP Analysis was one of the first projects launched by the national program. The "gaps" identified are ones where high species diversity is coupled with inadequate conservation status; that is, the project attempts to identify gaps in protection of areas of high species diversity.

GIS is an integral component of the GAP project. Maps with vegetation layers are used to predict species distributions. The vegetation layers are combined with actual wildlife sightings and records from museums to further estimate the distribution of species. The ranges predicted by vegetation analysis however, are not ground-truthed. That is, in most cases, no one has documented the presence or absence of the species as it appears on the distribution map.

In an effort to provide an accurate representation of where animals are, NatureMapping is a way to improve records that document where species occur. Maps can then be generated to show actual observations and predicted distributions.

In addition, the following personal benefits are obtained through NatureMapping:

• Educational experience and goals
  Learning about the plants and animals of your particular area is relevant to the study of science, social studies, art, math, writing, and reading.
  
  
• Community, bio-regional concepts
  Becoming knowledgeable about the plants and animals in our communities, re-connects us to the place we call home. Digitized maps allow us to create, store, update and analyze information. Making the information available to community groups, citizens, conservation organizations, community planners and anyone who needs the information, helps us to plan for the inevitable growth of our communities. Maps are powerful tools - they guide, inform and persuade us.