Accessing Web Map Services (WMS) – MPA Mapper
Web Map Service (WMS) layers permit users to combine and display map layers from various sources in multiple GIS software environments. Using the JNCC MPA Mapper's WMS layers allows access to all data displayed on the mapper, as some data are not downloadable from JNCC's Resource Hub. The spatial layers and their attributes can be viewed (including overlaid with other spatial data), but they cannot be queried/filtered, copied, saved or edited. Complete attribute tables are also unavailable in WMS layers, but the instructions below explain how to access available attributes in three GIS software (QGIS, ArcGIS Pro and ArcMap). Saving the WMS connection within GIS projects will allow continued access to the WMS layers, but will not allow for individual layers to be saved to local machines.
More information and guidance on the MPA mapper is also available on the Marine Protected Area Mapper webpage.
Accessing the WMS layers
To display JNCC MPA mapper layers on your desktop GIS application or on another web-based mapping portal, use the following WMS URL: https://mpa-ows.jncc.gov.uk/mpa_mapper/wms
Below are instructions for opening the layers in QGIS, ArcGIS Pro and ArcMap.
QGIS instructions
To access WMS layers in QGIS, follow the steps below.
QGIS is a free Geographic Information System software that can be downloaded from https://www.qgis.org/.
1. Open up QGIS (this example uses 3.16.5)
2. Click on Layer from the top panel. Click on Add Layer, and select Add WMS/WMTS Layer.
3. On the Layers tab click New.
4. Give the connection a name (e.g. JNCC MPA Mapper).
5. Paste in the MPA mapper WMS URL (https://mpa-ows.jncc.gov.uk/mpa_mapper/wms).
6. Click OK.
7. Click Connect to access the list of layers available via the WMS connection. Here you can select all available layers, or select a subset by holding down the Ctrl key and clicking on the layers of interest. Selected layers will be highlighted in blue.
8. Choose an image format in the Image Encoding section. PNG is the default option. Note: if once you've added layers they are not visible on your map, try selecting a different image format (SVG for example).
9. Tick Load as separate layers in the Layers panel to separate out the layers. This allows the individual layer attributes to be viewed.
10. Click the Add button in the bottom right of the screen.
11. Layers can be selected/deselected in the Layers panel using the tick boxes to the left of them.
12. To view attributes, select the Identify Features button on the top toolbar (or press Ctrl+Shift+I).
13. Click on the layer of interest on the map.
14. In the Identify Results window, from the drop down list select the layer you want to see the attributes for. Note: this only displays the attributes which are available on the MPA mapper.
15. Save these layers to a project to continue accessing them. Note: this does not download copies of the data to your machine.
ArcGIS Pro instructions
To access WMS layers in ArcGIS Pro, follow the steps below.
1. Open your version of ArcGIS Pro. This example uses ArcGIS Pro 3.3.
2. Select Connections in the top left toolbar, then Server, then New WMS Server.
3. The WMS Server Connection window will appear. Paste the MPA Mapper WMS URL (https://mpa-ows.jncc.gov.uk/mpa_mapper/wms) into the Server URL box.
4. The version can remain as default and no custom parameters need inputting. Click OK.
5. The WMS connection is saved within the Catalog panel on the right-hand side of the screen. Select Folders, MyProject, then the JNCC MPA mapper WMS Service on mpa-ows.
6. Right-click on the JNCC MPA mapper WMS Service. You can then choose to add the layers to the current map or to a new one.
7. Layers can be selected/deselected in the Contents window.
8. To view the attributes of layers as presented on the MPA mapper, use the Explore tool in the home panel. Select the layer of interest in the Contents window and click on the map with Explore highlighted to view the attributes.
9. Save these layers to a project to continue accessing them. Note: this does not download copies of the data to your machine.
ArcMap instructions
To access the WMS layers in ArcMap, follow the steps below.
1. Open your version of ArcGIS. This example uses ArcMap 10.1.
2. Click on Add Data in the top toolbar.
3. Select GIS Servers from the drop-down list.
4. Select Add WMS Server and click Add.
5. Paste the MPA Mapper WMS URL (https://mpa-ows.jncc.gov.uk/mpa_mapper/wms) into the URL box. Select Get Layers.
6. Click OK.
7. The WMS connection is now made available. The layers can be accessed via the Add Data button.
8. Click on JNCC MPA mapper WMS Service.
9. Here you can select all available layers or select a subset by holding down the Ctrl key and clicking on the layers of interest. Selected layers will be highlighted in blue. Click Add.
10. Layers can be selected/deselected in the Table of Contents window.
11. Right-click on layers and select Properties to see a brief description of them.
12. To view the layer's attributes, right-click on a layer and select Identify.
13. Selecting Identify opens a pop-up window. Note: this only displays the attributes which are available on the MPA mapper. You may also need to untick other layers to get the window to open correctly.
14. Save these layers to a project to continue accessing them. Note: this does not download copies of the data to your machine.
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