That's actually a very good question.  I'll leave to Bill to give the
official answer.  But "pelagic" means pertaining to the open ocean and
not associated with land.  So I'd suggest as a rule of thumb that you
are on a "pelagic" if you are out far enough that you lose sight of
the mainland.

Jim Moore
Rockville, MD

On Mon, Feb 27, 2012 at 2:24 PM, Joanne Howl <> wrote:
>  Sorry for what is probably a very elementary question -
>
> Can someone define exactly what a "pelagic" is?
>
> Is it anytime one is in a boat?  In a boat on the Bay? On a boat in the Ocean? Or?
>
>
>
>  Joanne
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Bill Hubick <>
> To: MDOSPREY <>
> Sent: Sun, Feb 26, 2012 6:22 pm
> Subject: [MDOSPREY] Maryland Pelagic Data in eBird
>
>
> Hi Everyone,
>
> Disappointed about the Maryland pelagic being canceled this weekend? Well,
> here's an easy we can still contribute to improving Maryland's pelagic data in
> eBird! We've created a new eBird hotspot called "Maryland Pelagic (General)",
> and it's intended for use when no precise location is available for a Maryland
> pelagic report. This is rarely the case for current trips, but is certainly the
> case for most pelagic data from years past.
>
> The Maryland pelagic map is pretty messy right now. While most of us would never
> dream of plotting a land-based sighting at a best guess within 100 miles, most
> of us have picked a random location at sea and plotted all of our pelagic data
> there. In some cases, there are reports of the same birds from vast distances
> apart. We understand that we can't go back and recover the GPS track for old
> trip, and we appreciate that so many users want their full lists in eBird.
> That's great! However, there are many benefits of merging all of this general
> pelagic data into one "general" hotspot:
>
> - Significantly increased accuracy of our pelagic data
> - Cleaner, more useful Maryland pelagic map
> - Best of all, more useful pelagic bar charts once checklists are merged into
> this location
>
> Maryland pelagic birders have been awesome about pelagic data collection for the
> last couple years. We keep full lists for each 30-minute block, capturing
> valuable, detailed information on where pelagic species are being seen. The
> eBird lists are compiled, usually by Rob Ostrowski (thanks, Rob!), and then
> shared with all participants. This process is time-consuming and sometimes takes
> a few days, but it's well worth the wait!  For observers who want to report
> sooner as a placeholder, please use the new "Maryland Pelagic (General)" hot
> spot.
>
> Please consider merging all of your general Maryland pelagic reports into this
> new hotspot!
>
> 1. Look up the name of your general Maryland pelagic location. One way to do so
> it to check your Maryland life list and check the location for pelagic species
> such as Great Shearwater.
> 2. Go to My eBird > Manage My Locations.
> 3. Select the name of your general pelagic location.
> 4. Click the "Merge" button.
> 5. Find and click the "Maryland Pelagic (General)" hotspot.
> 6. Check the "Delete after merging" checkbox.
> 7. Click "Merge"
> 8. If you had just one catch-all pelagic location, you're done. Otherwise,
> repeat for the others as applicable.
>
> THANKS!
>
> Some photos from the weekend:
> http://www.billhubick.com/photos/updates/20120226.php
>
> Good birding!
>
> Bill
>
> Bill Hubick
> Pasadena, Maryland
> 
> http://www.billhubick.com
>
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