-51- 



areas containing eagle nests, these can now be selected readily. 



The 64 natural areas of prime ecological importance are listed 

 below in Table 5 in order of numerical ranking. These and the 

 remaining 168 areas are indexed by state and county on Page 

 and by alphabetical order on Page , for ease in cross-referencing. 

 The remaining areas under consideration which appear in Table 6 all 

 received lower rankings using this particular system. They should 

 not , however, be neglected because they could easily score much 

 higher with different weightings or with the inclusion of other 

 factors in the rating system. 



The 64 prime natural areas represent roughly 28% of the original 

 232 areas considered and ranked. In area, the sixty-four sites 

 include about 236 square miles. Thus we are recommending procurement 

 or other preservation action for roughly 2% of the land in the 

 Chesapeake Bay region study area. The Center for Natural Areas is 

 already evaluating some of these areas as part of the Atlantic Coastal 

 Plain Natural Landmark Survey, under contract with the National Park 

 Service, Department of the Interior. 



NOTE: This survey should not be considered final or complete. Some 

 prime natural areas may have been inadvertently missed which 

 should have been included. The Center for Natural Areas welcomes 

 any and all additional ecological information to improve its 

 knowledge of the Bay region. 



