Mobile mapping: A new tool for eelgrass monitoring around Mount Desert Island

Taylor, Ashley; Johnson, Tora; Disney, Jane

From the abstract: "The Community Lab at MDI Biological Laboratory implemented new tools to map eelgrass with updated and improved mapping systems in the 2018 field season. The new mobile GIS (Geographic Information Systems) solution that was trialed utilizes Bluetooth technology and a Trimble R1 GNSS receiver to capture higher accuracy geospatial data that saved Community Lab staff time in the field and with post-processing work, all while improving data accuracy and streamlining data collection and map dissemination. This new technology builds on a decade of work by staff, students, and volunteers who began mapping eelgrass (Zostera marina) populations around Mount Desert Island (MDI), Maine as part of the work of the Community Lab to monitor, study, and conserve these essential habitats, with a focus on nine study sites around MDI. Eelgrass was declining across the state and knowing where populations were and how they were changing was an important factor in conservation efforts. The Department of Marine Resources and Maine Office of GIS previously mapped and published two state-wide datasets of eelgrass locations, one in 1997 and one in 2010. Each dataset took multiple years to compile and complete. For example, in the 2010 dataset, the Mount Desert Island region was mapped in 2008, and that was the last formal state-led assessment of eelgrass in the region. Aside from anecdotal observations, there have not been formalized calculations of the health of the remaining eelgrass populations in the region since then. Recognizing the need to maximize efficiency and utilize advancing technologies, the Community Lab has begun using new mobile tools to map eelgrass with updated and improved mapping systems, resulting in highly accurate maps of eelgrass in several of the 9 study sites. Continued mapping will result in an archive of accurate maps for reference by future generations of eelgrass researchers in Maine."