Anyone know what these pink "duck" like icons are? They appear to be laid out in a grid but not consistently. I can't seem to figure out how to shut them off.

I wasn't able to figure out how to turn them off either. They make for a very cluttered screen and difficult to identify the nav aids. Probably have to call the factory.

Whale safety areas.

Pretty sure there's no way to turn em off.

Seriously? That's lame. Do they really have to tell me to watch out for whales in 10' of water?

I've seen a lot of strange things but never a whale on the flats in front of long beach....

They're not whale safety areas. I'm pretty sure they have something to do with the birds eye view function on units that use the Navionics software.

They're not whale safety areas. I'm pretty sure they have something to do with the birds eye view function on units that use the Navionics software.

Ok, so Navionics is lying?

"the bird symbols denote sanctuary areas."

Horse's mouth.

That's not what Lowrance told me, but whatever. Why would they cover evry chart in every inshore area where whales have never been seen before? No use arguing with the great likwid.

BTW; they appear on top of land masses on the charts as well. Have the whales devolved to walking on land again after they last did millions of years ago?

Just spent a couple hours poking around on forums and it seems these are Navionics all encompassing symbol for an area where there is some sort of restriction. From no discharge or no anchor to whales or bird nesting area.

Supposedly there is a software update that allows you to turn that layer off. I'm going to send them a note and I'll post their response. If I don't hear back, I'll go to their office in Wareham and ask.

Definitely need to shut the stupid things off some how...This is Massachusetts, I don't think there is any area where at least something is not allowed.

That's not what Lowrance told me, but whatever. Why would they cover evry chart in every inshore area where whales have never been seen before? No use arguing with the great likwid.

You should ask Navionics since they're who provide the chart data to Navico.



Supposedly there is a software update that allows you to turn that layer off. I'm going to send them a note and I'll post their response. If I don't hear back, I'll go to their office in Wareham and ask.

Definitely need to shut the stupid things off some how...This is Massachusetts, I don't think there is any area where at least something is not allowed.

I've had 2 communications with them, one was "we don't sell direct", the other was my android chart app and it took them over a month to respond to e-mail. Not overly impressed. Calling/stopping by may be the best bet.

Here's the email to and response from Lowrance.

Hello,

I recently purchased your gold charts for North America and downloaded the PC app. I spent a lot of time reading various online forums to try to figure out why there are "pink ducks" everywhere and there seems to be only speculation and confusion as to what the icons indicate. Can you provide a definition as to what they indicate? Can they be turned off? Some of the message boards indicate that there was a software update released to allow that layer to be turned off but there was nothing definitive for direction.

They only appear on the PC app., not on the Lowrance Gen2 HDS7 plotter that I'm using. I'm referencing the charts for Cape Cod Bay, Buzzards Bay and Vineyard Sound.

Thanks

Mark

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Mark,

Thank you for contacting Navionics. We apologize for the delay in response due to the high volume of emails being received at this time.

The "pink ducks" as they are called reference a restricted area due to Nature or National Reserve areas. For example, in the Northeast, one of the restricted areas they are indicating is the Northern Right Whale protected areas.

This is a part of the mapping information provided on the Navionics charts. Because the Navionics PC App includes all of the charting information these will also appear in the PC App. There is no way to currently shut off layers of information on the Navionics PC App.

Some units, such as the Lowrance HDS units do have user selectable layers, which can be turned on or off by the user. Please note that turning off layers of information needs to be done carefully as other information that may be critical to your boating may also be removed when turning off these chart layers.

Best regards,

Scott Costa
Customer Service
Tel: 800-848-5896 | Fax: 508-291-6006

That sucks.