2018 GulfMAP Annual Report

This report summarizes the second complete calendar year of data entered into the GulfMAP database. GulfMAP is a pilot project of the Marine Mammal Health Monitoring and Analysis Platform (HealthMAP). The goal of HealthMAP is to develop a comprehensive information system to collect, curate, and distribute data on marine mammal health. Health data will be standardized in this platform. This dataset will give the public, scientists, and resource managers the ability to detect and visualize public and animal health risks, and to prioritize management and conservation efforts. Due to similar priorities of HealthMAP and the Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund (GEBF) managed by National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF), it was decided that a pilot project would take place in the Gulf of Mexico to develop and test a GulfMAP database using the stranding network GEBF grant recipients. The goal of this report is to summarize the current data in GulfMAP until it can be moved to a web-based platform from which managers would be able to query and visually display the information directly.