Date: Wed, 6 Mar 2002 13:23:30 -0500 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Walter Ellison Subject: Resources for Atlas work Comments: cc: Robert Scahefer MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Hi All, I received this excellent compendium of advice on using publicly = available landowner information and aerial photos to pinpoint and survey = bird habitat in Atlas blocks from Bob Schaefer by way of Jo Solem and = Jane Coskren. I think the advice is very useful and will help just about = anybody go about their Atlas field work. Enjoy. From Robert Schaefer: Finding bird habitat in your Atlas block =20 If your Atlas block includes large areas of parkland and other public = property with good bird habitat, congratulations! If not, you may need = to expend some effort to find areas of good habitat and then to obtain = permission to survey those areas. Being a mapping enthusiast, I have = been preparing for the first spring of the Atlas project by obtaining = aerial photos and property maps as described below.=20 =20 Aerial Photos =20 You can obtain good aerial photos of some (but not all) areas of = Maryland from mapquest.com. Coverage seems complete for Howard County. = For my block, I could see from construction (habitat destruction) = projects that the photos available at this web site were made during the = summer of 2001. I don't know if the same is true elsewhere in Maryland.=20 =20 At this web site, you can enter a street address, town name, or zip code = and a map will be returned. At the upper left corner of the map are tabs = by which you can select either a street map or an aerial photo. Click on = the box "Big Map" at the upper right corner to get a map covering a = larger area. Use the bar on the right of the map to zoom in closer. At = the highest magnification, you can sees cars and trucks on I-70, as well = as the dashed white lines between lanes! More importantly, you can see = ponds, individual trees in meadows, power transmission lines and other = features important for the Breeding Bird Atlas.=20 =20 You can move around by using the arrows on top and bottom and sides of = the map, or by clicking on the map to re-center the view. I printed out = a mosaic to cover the entire area of my block, which took over 30 pages. = By using the re-centering feature rather than the arrows to move the = map, you can (with a little practice) print the maps with just a small = amount of overlap. The resulting picture was about 25 inches high and 30 = inches wide. Finally, I covered the assembled mosaic with transparent = contact paper (available at WalMart) to make the map waterproof and = abrasion resistant. A bit large for field use, but I did admit to being = a mapping enthusiast (geek?). =20 Property Maps =20 Property ownership is a matter of public record. The State of Maryland = publishes maps showing all property parcels in each county. These are = available for viewing in each county's courthouse. The maps are covered = by copyright and you may not copy them at the courthouse. You can, = however, purchase them directly from the state.=20 =20 Much information can be obtained over the internet. At = www.dat.state.md.us (the "dat" stands for Department of Assessments and = Taxation) you can obtain the name and address of the owner of any parcel = of property (plus other information such as how much they paid for the = property and what is its assessed value). To use this site, click on = "Click to Search Data" then on"Real Property Data Search" and select the = county. You will then be given several choices on how you want to do the = search. You can enter a street name (omitting the word "street," "road," = "circle," etc.) and, if you know it, the street number. Or, if you have = the property map, you can enter the map and parcel number. When you have = selected the property you want, you can also select to view a map of it. = However, the maps shown on this site are very limited in size and not = very useful for large properties which would be of most interest in the = Breeding Bird Atlas Project.=20 =20 The property maps are available through www.mdp.state.md.us. A variety = of mapping resources are available, including CDs for each county with = property maps and aerial photos, as well as the paper property maps = which you can view at the county courthouse. The web site lists the = various usage restrictions for these products. An order form for the = paper maps is found at www.mdp.state.md.us/data/maporder.html. The maps = cost $7.50 each.=20 =20 To find out which map numbers you will need for any area, you can go to = look at them at the county courthouse, but you can also use the = www.dat.state.md.us site. Type in the name of a street within your area = and you will be given a list of properties with the map and parcel = numbers. Caution: urban areas are covered by special more detailed maps, = usually with map numbers greater than 100. Choose a street in a more = rural area to obtain the map number.=20 =20 You will probably need several property maps to cover your block, so it = would work best to investigate the map number covering different parts = of the block. But don't be discouraged, your task is sure to be easier = than mine because I have the only block in Maryland that includes four = counties! =20 By comparing the property maps to the aerial photos, you can tell which = parcel number applies to an area of interesting habitat. You can then = use the www.dat.state.md.us site to identify the property owner.=20 =20 Bob Schaefer rjs30@erols.com =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =========================================================================