Many biologists collect data in the field, enter the data in the lab, and then analyze the data for meaning. Working in the field often requires working in remote areas and carrying survey equipment and working in the office can take many hours. Collector with ArcGIS is a great tool to incorporate into field work by saving time in the field and office all while expanding the capabilities of data collection. Data collection can be done with a smart device even in the remote areas offline. The benefits of using collector include but are not limited to: offline navigation; point, line, and polygon creation; media attachments with geospatial location reference; note taking, and more. The overall objective of this project is to apply the capabilities of Collector to recording field data on a wildlife biology research project. Some of the benefits we have seen using Collector include. 1) Increase survey time in the field by reducing time recording data. 2) Reduce human error in data entry with domains and ranges. 3) Eliminate post data entry 4) Allow supervisors to oversee field work effort from their phone or desktop. Hardcopy of the data was still recorded for backup and reference in the editing of the data. With the seamless interaction with ArcGIS Online and ArcGIS PRO, your data can easily be proofed, visually represented, and statistically analyzed, or the data can be exported to excel.
