iMapInvasives

Photo Credit: @ Monika Olszewska/Shutterstock

iMapInvasives is an online, mobile-friendly, GIS-based data management system that is used for tracking and managing invasive species. iMapInvasives is used by natural resource professionals and citizen scientists to quickly and easily report information about invasive species. The platform enables real-time tracking of infestations and improves management decisions to protect native species and ecosystems.

Since many regulatory and budgetary decisions about invasive species are made at the state or province level, each participating jurisdiction can customize their iMapInvasives platform, including the creation of custom species lists. You can learn more about iMapInvasives at  http://www.imapinvasives.org . To sign up for a free account and explore the iMapInvasives application, visit  imapinvasives.natureserve.org .

The iMapInvasives Partnership facilitates the management and sharing of invasive species information, including the extent of infestations, search efforts, and treatment outcomes. Affordable, sustainable, and collaborative tools developed by the Partnership provide a flexible platform for aggregating invasive species data from a wide variety of sources – anywhere in the Americas. These tools add value by organizing the data to support early detection of new populations that may require a rapid response, and analysis of management strategies at scales relevant to user needs.

iMapInvasives operates on a state or province jurisdictional level, providing a link for many entities working on invasive species. Each participating jurisdiction has an iMapInvasives administrator who works with groups to define the jurisdiction’s tracked species list, incorporate bulk uploads of existing data, and train users. Jurisdiction Admins also help guide new development efforts and provide input on design and functionality requirements.

"In Maine we rely on iMapInvasives as our central repository for invasive plant occurrence data. Using one publicly accessible, free online tool has streamlined our program and allows us to meet the needs of community scientists, teachers and students, and land management professionals." Nancy Olmstead, Maine Natural Areas Program

iMapInvasives is designed to share and manage invasive species information for stakeholders within your state or province. This information includes presence records, treatment efforts and effectiveness, and areas where invasive species were searched for but were not found. iMapInvasives also has built in functionality like custom distribution maps, email alerts, filters, exports, and reports to inform regulatory decisions and rapid response efforts. Since many regulatory and budgetary decisions about invasive species are made at the state level, each jurisdiction can customize their iMapInvasives platform by selecting their tracked species list, setting user roles and permissions, and many other details. On a broader scale, iMapInvasives is a growing, collaborative partnership of participating states and provinces, with a network of professionals and shared resources to help combat the threat of invasive species.

"As a nature enthusiast, I'm greatly alarmed by the spread and impact of invasive species. The iMapInvasives program is an outstanding resource that I've used not only to share my own observations but to further my understanding of invasive species. The program offers a wealth of information, all in one place, that I can't find elsewhere." Nicholas Tonelli, Citizen Scientist

iMapInvasives has four basic record types within the application: Search Areas, Presence Records (observations), Not-Detected Records, and Treatment Records.

"iMapInvasives has allowed us to create the most comprehensive dataset for invasive species ever seen in the state, a valued resource leading to coordination and management of noxious weeds, modeling of predicted habitat for invasives, and supporting research at agencies and universities." Lindsey Wise, Oregon Biodiversity Information Center

"iMapInvasives is comprehensive, yet easy to use. A user can quickly get a complete picture of what is threatening a given area and make management decisions." Brian Crooks, Western Pennsylvania Conservancy

"What makes iMapInvasives so powerful is that not only can you view general distribution maps documenting invasive species across the state, but other tools allow you to create specific maps for a project area, set up an alert system for account users within your CWMA, or track the progress of treatments and control efforts." Kimberly Bohn, Ph.D, Penn State Extension and Allegheny Plateau Invasive Plant Alliance

Click on the title of the report to view a sample of each report type

•  Species List by Geography : Reports a list of species found in the drawn or selected geographic layer (can include a buffer). Report runs on the layers that are turned on in the legend and can include Presence, Approximate Presence, Not-Detected, and Treatment Records (depending on permissions). A map snippet can be included if desired.
•  Infested Area : Reports the total infested area of the drawn or selected geographic layer (can include a buffer) for the selected species and time frame. If no species are selected, it reports on all species. Similarly, if no date is selected, it returns all dates. By default, the reports runs on all polygons, but can optionally report on buffered points and lines - based on buffer distance entered by the user. A map snippet can be included if desired.
•  Approaching Region : Reports a list of species that occur within a specified distance of drawn or selected geography to determine species that are not yet in the selected geography, but are approaching the region in question. User inputs the buffer distance to be used for the approaching region. Report will run on all presence layers turned on in the legend, excluding deleted presence layers.
•  Treated Area : This report will display 'total area treated' based on Treatment records located within a custom-drawn polygon or geographic boundary by a user running the report. Users can specify one or more species as well as Treatment begin/end dates as part of this report. If desired, the report will run on all species and all Treatment begin/end dates if these options are left blank.

"The built-in analytical reports in iMap are very powerful. We can easily make a list of which species are present, or not present but approaching, for any geography value we need. And the infested area report lets us estimate the coverage by species using the most current data. Our partners now have strategic information for invasive species work at the click of a button." Jennifer Dean, New York Natural Heritage Program

"iMapInvasives has helped our collaboration with many different partners to engage citizen scientists, and to focus survey and conservation efforts where they are most needed." Jason Denham, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

"We achieved our project goals, but this time we were also thrilled to generate a large amount of useful public data with immediate availability. We are also pleased to have demonstrated the viability of a large-scale, concerted invasives mapping project using this platform..." Sarah Wurzbacher, Penn State Extension

• Add Layer from URL: This is a tool available within the iMap legend that allows you to enter a URL of Map Or Feature Service to Add to the map. You can then save this layer to the map for the map session. This allows you to view multiple datasets alongside iMapInvasives data.
• Web Map Services: iMapInvasives data are also published as Web Map Services so they can be be brought into ArcGIS Online or other GIS-based applications to view and manipulate iMap Data in other platforms. More information on the iMapInvasives Web Map Services can be found on the  iMapInvasives website .
• Exchange Services: iMapInvasives hosts several exchange services within iMapInvasives so that data will be always available and current. These data are listed in the Exchange Service section of the legend. More exchange services are being planned for the future including USGS NAS - Nonindigenous Aquatic Species and potentially iNaturalist data.

Use the map below to explore iMapInvasives public presence data from January 1, 2015 to present. The hex layer includes all data. Zoom, pan and search for addresses and see what confirmed iMapInvasives records exist in your area of interest! As you zoom in, point, line, and polygon layers become available, however, those data have been filtered to include only data from 2015 to present. To see our complete data set, create a free account for  iMapInvasives !

Are you interested in bringing iMapInvasives to your state or province? For additional information on hosting iMapInvasives in your state or province, please see the flyer below and  Contact Us  to discuss how to get started.