As global positioning technology increases in accuracy and affordability, GPS units have become an essential tool for any field worker particularly for surveys. GPS can be used for storing locations of the survey subject, for example a sighting of an animal or where a specific plant is growing. You can either use the GPS to simply give you a position for your written records or use a unit to store locations digitally for later use.
Out in the field, on your GPS choose the Store A Waypoint option. This will store your location in either OS grid or another formats such as lat/long. You can give a name to that location. Some people use codes for different species or behaviour such as bird flying, feeding, nesting etc. For recording sightings of animals that are difficult to get close to, remember to record the direction and distance of a sighting from your GPS position to allow you to calculate the exact location of that animal later.
Once back at base, these points can be downloaded into your PC using software compatible with your GPS. For most requirements basic trip and waypoint management software is sufficient. This will allow you to display locations on a map. The locations and names can then be exported into a spreadsheet for your records, or then exported from the spreadsheet into other mapping programs. GIS software often used for survey work - you can display your waypoints as a population on a map. Alternatively you can make use of a GPS card for a laptop or PDA. This allows you to transfer your location directly into your digital records all on one device.
You could also use your waypoints as a means to retrace your steps - for example, if you record a nesting site in the spring and want to return in summer to make further observations. Simply re-enter your recorded location into the GPS, take it into the field and use it to get back to the specific location - very useful if you need to find one little plant in a whole field!
As you are only using the most basic functions of a GPS, you can get away with using the most basic units - so it can be much cheaper than you might imagine to use GPS technology to assist with surveys. The most popular units for this purpose we find are the Garmin eTrex range although you could use any GPS that has the capacity to store and download waypoints. You might want to consider how many points you need to store in the unit at any one time. Units with built-in altimeters can be useful when your data needs to be linked to altitude.
