Georgia Gap

Vertebrate Distribution Maps

Overview | Amphibians | Birds | Mammals | Reptiles

The purpose of the GAP vertebrate species distribution maps is to provide more precise information about the current predicted distribution of individual native species within their general ranges. With this information, better estimates can be made about the actual amounts of habitat area and the nature of its configuration.

Previous to this effort there were no maps available, digital or otherwise, showing the likely present-day distribution of species by habitat type across their ranges. Because of this, ordinary species (i.e., those not threatened with extinction or not managed as game animals) are generally not given sufficient consideration in land-use decisions in the context of large geographic regions or in relation to their actual habitats. Their decline because of incremental habitat loss can, and does, result in one threatened or endangered species "surprise" after another. Frequently, the records that do exist for an ordinary species are truncated by state boundaries. Simply creating a consistent spatial framework for storing, retrieving, manipulating, analyzing, and updating the totality of our knowledge about the status of each animal species is one of the most necessary and basic elements for preventing further erosion of biological resources.