Hi Everyone, 

I moved to Maryland a few months ago and have created a few tools in order to get acquainted with all the best birding sites. Using the ebird hotspot database was an easy choice, but unfortunately its a bit difficult to get a good overview when browsing ebird. The first map I put together is a Google Map page that shows all the hotspots and color-codes them by the amount of checklists at that location. Also, each pinpoint contains a link to view sightings at that location. 

What has been most useful, however, is turning all the ebird hotspots into POIs (points of interest) on my GPS unit. It has really cut down on the amount of time needed on research before leaving the house and really proves its worth when traveling from one birding location to another. Another great usage is finding new sites when on the move. When driving to see a rarity, you could browse the closest hotspots to your current location and you might just find a sod farm a mile away that you have never heard of.  

Files / maps can be found here for the time being - http://gebirding.googlepages.com/maryland

I plan on updating the GPS files pretty regularly. New hotspots are added all the time and some are not quite in the right location. Keep that in mind if you decide to use this. Also keep in mind that many of the hotspots are not placed with GPS units in mind. Therefore, going to a location where the pinpoint is in the middle of a lake may not take you to the proper parking or birding area. The GPS unit will just take you to road that is closest to the pinpoint. There, it is best to know something about the location beforehand. 


Getting the files on your GPS is not hard (as long as it has some way to connect to a computer or a SD slot), but unfortunately is different for each GPS unit. POI factory has much more information than I could hope to provide. Visit their FAQ site here http://www.poi-factory.com/faq - click on the brand of GPS you have, and then read articles that mention how to 'load POI files'. Also you can check your GPS manual or google 'Load POI files "YOUR GPS MODEL". I hope some of you end up using this. Feel free to email me if you have questions. 


Jared Fisher
North Bethesda, MD