- Help! No map is visible!
- Tools
- Enabling and disabling java mode
- Layers and GIS Data
- Queries for Project, Site, and Layer information
- Saving or printing a map
- Notes for Mac OS X and Safari users
- Acknowledgements
- Additional questions

- This link opens a window with information about the interactive map layer, including how it was created from the source data and the scales at which it is displayed. The window also provides metadata and download links for the source data.

- Allows a new color to be selected for a layer. After a color is selected, click the 'Redraw map' button to apply the change.

- After checking additional layers or changing the color of layers, click on this button to redraw the map and apply your changes.

The resolution of some layers (DOQs, Landsat imagery, the Vegetation Map, DRGs) varies according to the map scale. Layer resolution is displayed in the legend and in the layer table on the left. When a layer cannot be shown (the map scale may be too high or too low), the layer is greyed out in the layer table to the left. ZOOM IN or ZOOM OUT refers to what must be done to make the grey layer visible.

The map dimensions in pixels can be selected from a drop down menu.
The default is 450 pixels by 450 pixels.

The query zoom tool and the query tool query the following layers:
- Canals (the layer doesn't have to be visible)
- Roads (the layer doesn't have to be visible)
- UGA Vegetation Map (only if the layer is visible) - Queries on the vegetation map will usually return more information (such as species names and community descriptions) than the Vegetation Map legend shows.
All layer information is displayed below the map.

Project and site information
The query tools also query an invisible layer which contains all project sites (FCE LTER or related project sites do not need to be displayed before the query). All project sites which fall inside the selected area are highlighted in yellow and labeled. Additionally, the projects and sites selected are listed to the right of the map. Clicking on the name of a project will open a window with information about the project (abstract, start and end dates, investigators, etc.). Clicking on any one of the sites listed under a project will open a window with a site description, a list of sampling attributes collected at the site, publications associated with the site, and links to data collected at the site.

Query buffer
If java mode is enabled () and queries are made by drawing a rectangle on the map, the buffer distance doesn't matter. However, if java mode is off () or queries are made by clicking a point on the map, the buffer specifies the radius of the selected or queried area (the query area is a circle instead of a rectangle). The default buffer value changes as the map scale changes. The buffer distance can also be defined from a drop down list (see image to the right).

Click this button to capture the current map.

After the map has been saved, the following links will appear:

HTML link - Clicking on this link will show the captured map (not the current map) in a new window. You can print this page or save the map, legend, and key map images (ex. right click, Save image as ...).

PDF link - Clicking on this link will display the captured map as a PDF, which you can save or print.

Download georeferenced map - This link allows you to download a zipfile contained a georeferenced version of the captured map. The JPG file and the JGW world file must be in the same directory in order for the JPG to be georeferenced. A readme file contains information about the background layer used in the map.

Citation information - This link provides a suggested citation for the captured map. If you copy and paste this citation, please replace "PLEASE INSERT YOUR NAME HERE" with your name.

The map needs to be captured before it can be saved, since any click on the main map performs an action (zooming in, querying, recentering, etc.). Additionally, the map needs to be redrawn at least once before it can be captured. You could also use a screen capture to save the map (hit the print screen key, then paste the image into an image editor).

If java mode is enabled ( the default setting), the interactive map should work with Safari 1.2 or later and Java version 1.4.2 or later. Some features of the interactive map won't work with earlier versions of Safari, since they don't support LiveConnect (for communication between JavaScript and Java applets). You can download the latest version of Safari and Java from Apple at http://www.apple.com/safari/ .

We used the following interactive mapping software and tools:

  • Mapserver - Developed by the University of Minnesota ForNet project and enhanced by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (MNDNR), open souce

  • PHP MapScript - Developed by DM Solutions Group, open source

  • ROSA Java Applet - Developed by DM Solutions Group, open source

  • GMap mapping engine (PHP/MapScript version) - Developed by DM Solutions Group, open source. You can view a demo of this mapping engine at http://www2.dmsolutions.ca/gmap/gmap75.phtml and download the source from DM Solutions at http://www.maptools.org/dl/ (append gmap-ms40.zip to the end of this url).


We obtained GIS data from the following sources:

  • South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD)
  • Land Boundary Information System (LABINS)
  • Center for Remote Sensing and Mapping Science, Department of Geography at The University of Georgia
  • U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)
  • National Park Service (NPS)
  • Florida Geographic Data Library (FGDL)
  • Florida Natural Areas Inventory (FNAI)
  • Florida Department of Environmental Protection
  • Florida Department of Transportation
  • Florida Coastal Everglades LTER

Please send an e-mail to fcelter@fiu.edu if you have additional questions.