Tampa Bay 1987-1997 Manatee Distribution Surveys Theoretical Flight Path
<a href="http://atoll.floridamarine.org/Data/Metadata/SDE_Current/Manatee_DistPath_TampaBay_1987_1997_arc.html" target=_blank>For a full FGDC compliant metadata record, please click here. </a> </p>

Aerial distribution surveys are used by marine mammal biologists from FWC and other agencies to determine the seasonal distribution of manatees. Most surveys are conducted from small, four-seat, high-winged airplanes (Cessna 172 or 182) flying at a height of 500-1000 ft at a speed of 70-90 kts. Small helicopters may be used instead of fixed wing aircraft in urban areas or where waters are particularly opaque and hovering may be required. Surveys are flown along a standardized, theoretical flight route, which was designed to cover all likely manatee habitats in the study area. This "theoretical flight path" indicates the area that was covered during each survey, but it may not be the actual flight route flown on every survey. GPS tracklines recorded during surveys may be available for some flights. The survey area includes the largest estuary in Florida, which borders Pinellas, Hillsborough, and Manatee counties on Florida’s west coast. Tampa Bay consists of mostly shallow water (average 3m) with Egmont Channel (27m) and the main dredged shipping channels (13m). Five rivers enter the Bay: Hillsborough, Alafia, Little Manatee, Manatee, and Braden rivers. The area includes large expanses of seagrass in Boca Ciega Bay and Anna Maria Sound. Many undeveloped areas under state or federal management were part of the study area, including Egmont Key, Passage Key, and Pinellas national wildlife refuge.
nan
[{'name': 'OBJECTID', 'type': 'esriFieldTypeOID', 'alias': 'OBJECTID', 'domain': None, 'editable': False, 'nullable': False, 'defaultValue': None, 'modelName': 'OBJECTID'}, {'name': 'Id', 'type': 'esriFieldTypeSmallInteger', 'alias': 'Id', 'domain': None, 'editable': True, 'nullable': True, 'defaultValue': None, 'modelName': 'Id'}, {'name': 'created_user', 'type': 'esriFieldTypeString', 'alias': 'created_user', 'domain': None, 'editable': False, 'nullable': True, 'length': 255, 'defaultValue': None, 'modelName': 'created_user'}, {'name': 'created_date', 'type': 'esriFieldTypeDate', 'alias': 'created_date', 'domain': None, 'editable': False, 'nullable': True, 'length': 8, 'defaultValue': None, 'modelName': 'created_date'}, {'name': 'last_edited_user', 'type': 'esriFieldTypeString', 'alias': 'last_edited_user', 'domain': None, 'editable': False, 'nullable': True, 'length': 255, 'defaultValue': None, 'modelName': 'last_edited_user'}, {'name': 'last_edited_date', 'type': 'esriFieldTypeDate', 'alias': 'last_edited_date', 'domain': None, 'editable': False, 'nullable': True, 'length': 8, 'defaultValue': None, 'modelName': 'last_edited_date'}]
[{'name': 'S692_idx', 'fields': 'Shape', 'isAscending': True, 'isUnique': True, 'description': ''}]
nan
{'renderer': {'type': 'simple', 'symbol': {'type': 'esriSLS', 'style': 'esriSLSSolid', 'color': [230, 0, 169, 255], 'width': 3}, 'label': '', 'description': ''}, 'transparency': 0, 'labelingInfo': None}
[]
[{'name': 'Tampa Bay 1987-1997 Manatee Distribution Surveys Theoretical Flight Path', 'description': '', 'prototype': {'attributes': {'Id': None}}, 'drawingTool': 'esriFeatureEditToolLine'}]